The Craft among the Stars
by MARK751
Summary: When thirteen teenagers from a class found themselves on the foreign planet of Naboo, just before the droid invasion. But soon they realized they could summon units from Starcraft into the surrounding. How will they change the course of war? Will they save the darkness that's consuming the galaxy, or will they be the darkness? Read the summary chapter for full summary.
1. Full Summary

When thirteen teenagers from a class found themselves on the foreign planet of Naboo, just before the droid invasion. But soon they realized they could summon units from Starcraft into the surrounding. How will they change the course of war? Will they save the darkness that's consuming the galaxy, or will they be the darkness?

What happens when a zeolet meets a Jedi?

What happens when a marine meets a clone trooper?

Who will win? A battle cruiser or a Destroyer?

Read the story to find out.

Updates two long(2000+ words) chapters and an unknown number of short(1000+) chapters per Saturday.

I might upload some extra chapters when it's not Saturday.


	2. Prequal

"Who are you?" Cassidy asked as she clutched to her injured right arm. A shattered dagger was on the ground beside her.

"I don't have much time, so listen carefully." A figure before her said. It's a figure and not a person because it is not a person. It's a tall creature with grey skin. He had no mouth, but somehow he's able to talk. He had no nose either, but he did have eyes. They are a pair of holes that shined blue light. "A darkness have destroyed our planet and slaughtered our people. You are our last hope of survival."

"I am not your keen."Cassidy smirked despite her situation as a captive. "You are a monster, and I am a human being. Plus, I don't understand a word you are saying." She stated.

"Not now." The figure walked up to Cassidy. The girl tried to move, but the figure stretched out and grabbed her by the neck. She kicked the figure several times with all her strength, with no success. "But you will be very soon."

The figure took out a strange looking rock and put it onCassidy's head. The rock shined and melted into Cassidy's forehead, leaving a yellow symbol there.

The girl fell on the ground. She clutched to her head and screamed in pain. Inside her brain, blue energy fanned out and changed the brain tissues, transforming the girl into something way more superior. PSI ability developed.

On the outside, the girl's body transformed. Her hair started to grow and extend, forming a long braid that hanged down on her back. Her muscles started to grow, and her bones grew way more stronger.

The figure smiled at the sight of the human-protoss. There's a reason he chose this girl. Even critically injured, he is still a powerful Protoss templer. And with his powerful psi energy he discovered something interesting about the girl.

The girl had been extremely logical and have shown incredible self control. Also, she have had some experience in dealing with pain and combat. Even when he just appeared the girl attacked him, lethally. If he wasn't having his shield up and the girl had something better than a dagger he'd be wounded and possibly killed. She's good.

Furthermore, she is in the group that would be known as the "Hope of mankind."

In the darkness, no one stands a chance. Protoss didn't, Zerg didn't, and those Terran didn't. The entire Koprulu Sector fell within a few days.

But those Terran always had a backup plan. After the combined work of hundreds of best Terran scientists, they discovered the way for Terra to survive in an alternated way.

All of the people in their universe are doomed, yes. But if they can smuggle a base into another world, then the man who owned the base, the would be Terran commanders, would be able to revive Terra in another universe. The commanding center held thousands of conscious that would allow the cloning of those deceased. In other words, Terra will be transported to another world. A world in which there is no...Apocalypse.

The Protoss soon realized the project as thousands of oracles searched the timeline for the last hope of the Kala. Eventually they found it.

And that's why the templer is here.

The rock contained the dimensional door to a Protoss base that existed within a half dimension. By mending the rock into the girl, the templer gave the girl a way to a base that is completely safe. With enough resources and the use of consciousness storage and construction, an army can be rallied in a short amount of time.

And by giving the girl a psionic link, he gave the girl permanent control of the base and the army that will be created.

This is not the best way, but it's the only way.

The Protoss looked at his arm. It is starting to disappear into thin air. He knows what will happen if he stays any longer. He turned around and transformed into a group of blue particles and disappeared.

 **Author's note: This short paragraph doesn't count as one of the two paragraphs I update every week:)**


	3. Preparation (2K)

Cassidy stood up in the alleyway. She was not surprised to see the Protoss templer left. From the evolution and mending she also received a briefing on the current condition by a mechanical adjacent.

She silently touched her long, blonde braid, or rather the psionic link. The structure allowed her to not only give orders to the Protoss units in her base but also feel their minds.

Cassidy turned around and walked toward her home. She was coming out to do a grocery shopping, but got intercepted by the templer in the alley. Now, after what happened, she's lost the appetite. Plus, Protoss don't eat food for energy.

Cassidy walked across a driveway and into an apartment. She's an orphan. She never knew who her parents were, but she had been in an orphanage since when she first knew things. At first, it was a bit hard to live without a family, but she's getting used to it.

After walking up to the third floor, Cassidy opened a door and entered her room. It's a small living space, but still, it's nice and tidy. She made a habit of cleaning her living quarters everyday. After all, if she doesn't, who will?

Cassidy sat down on a chair and relaxed. Suddenly, her body was transformed into a series of basic molecules, which eventually disappeared.

In the Protoss base, Cassidy's body solidified.

The girl first scanned the base. The only memories she had about the base was through the flow of memory from the Protoss adjacent by the Khala. It's the first time she has seen the Protoss base.

The Protoss base only has one building, and that is the Nexus. Nexus is a Protoss building that can build two units: probes and Mothership Core. Unfortunately, only the probe is available because the mothership core requires a building known as the Cybernetic Core, a building that she has yet to construct.

Beside the Nexus were eight probes. Probes are the basic worker unit of the Protoss. They are machines designed to gather resource and construct buildings. Probes can also attack with their mineral gathering beam, but its shield and attack are too weak for real combat. Unfortunately, there's no mineral for the probe to mine from.

"Produce a probe." Cassidy ordered through the Khala.

"You require additional minerals." The adjacent reported.

"How many minerals do I need?" Cassidy asked, slightly frustrated.

"50. The current storage is 0 mineral and 0 vespine."

"How do I gain minerals?"

"Any material can be transformed into mineral." The adjacent answered. "But the exchanging rate is different."

Cassidy nodded. "I will find a way to gain more resource. How about vespine gas?"

"Vespine gas can only be harvested from vespine geysers."

"How do I find the vespine geysers?"

"I don't know. But I will notice you as soon as possible."

Cassidy signed. "Fine. Tell me about the army that doesn't require vespine gas."

"After a gateway has been constructed, zeolets will be available." The adjacent explained. "But there are no zeolets that we can warp in, which means we will have to create zeolets with the resources available. The reproductive mechanism and chrono boost in the Nexus can create fully grown Protoss warriors that can become any unit, but the creation will be slow."

Cassidy silently cursed. "How slow?" She asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"One Protoss can be created in 30 hours on Earth. That is with the Chrono Boost."

"Then what do we have?" Cassidy swore. "I can't fight in an alternate universe without an army!"

"Luckily, the problem had been considered by the tacticians." The adjacent suddenly said, which made Cassidy want to slap him. Can't you tell the entire thing quickly?

"That's why the gateways are accustomed to construct Sentinals."

"What?"

"Purifier version of zeolets. Sentinals are robots armed with double psi blades and are experts in combat. Each one of them costs 1500 minerals to construct, and can be reconstruct when destroyed."

"I see." Cassidy said. Finally, some good news. "Is there anything else you want to tell me before I go?"

"Yes." The adjacent said. He would've kept silent if Cassidy didn't ask. "Come into the Nexus."

Cassidy nodded in acknowledgement and walked into the Nexus. She saw the mechanical adjacent, who stood up and walked to a storage cell. He pressed something, and the cell's glasses disappeared, and Cassidy saw a futuristic armor.

It's a golden suit. Two psionic blades were on the arms. An arc was on its back that Cassidy knew was used to amplify the psi level of the user. In the center of the armor was a crystal that powered the plasma shield that protects the user from any damage until destroyed. It's a powerful weapon.

"The armor is alternated to fit your body." The adjacent explained. "Which means it can be warped onto you whenever needed. Could be handy when you want to hide from the Terran commanders."

"Speaking of Terran." Cassidy suddenly thought about something. "Will the Terran be able to notice my Protoss character?"

"No, you are technically still human, and with a little trick you can disguise your neural cord. The Terran units will simply see you as a Terran with high psi level, which is rare but not unseen."

"I see. Notice me if you detect any vespine geyser." Cassidy turned around and walked out of the Nexus.

"As you wish, Executor."

* * *

Cassidy's body solidified, and after a few seconds, she was standing in her room as if nothing changed. But, in fact, everything changed.

Cassidy took a deep breath. From the memory and information she received, she knew the Terran backup plan would arriving tomorrow. From what she heard, the Terran were more prepared than the Protoss, and they will likely be way stronger. She needs to play a normal girl if she wants to survive.

She sat for a while before, going over her plan, before walking out the room. If she's going to another universe tomorrow, she'd better get as prepared as possible. And the best chance she has will be the Protoss base. But in order for it to help, she'll need minerals.

* * *

Cassidy walked to a darker part of the city. The day is getting darker, and criminals are starting to lurk around the corners. Drug dealers, prostitutes, weapon dealers. Every type of crime is going on under the cover of the night.

But Cassidy was not even close to being frightened by the unfriendly glares random people lay on her. Instead, she easily reached somewhere she's quite familiar with.

She reached an old warehouse.

The door was half closed, and loud laughter came out of the warehouse. Cassidy walked in without any hesitation.

Three men were sitting before by a table near the door. They stood up as soon as they heard the door opening and someone walking in. Their hands were on their belt, minimizing the time needed to draw the weapon. However, they relatively relaxed after they saw Cassidy.

"Cas?" One of them asked. "What a surprise."

Cassidy nodded. "Where's Han? I need to see him."

"What''s up?"

"There's something I need to talk to him with." Cassidy said. She doesn't answer to watchdogs.

"Han is busy now." Another guard said. That was when Cassidy heard a seductive moan coming from the inner rooms, then she realized how busy Han is.

"This is urgent." Cassidy pushed. She has little time to spare.

"Be patient." A guard said. Cassidy frowned, and the guard subconsciously reached for his gun. He has heard what the girl is capable of, and he has no intention of dying painfully. The girl in front of him is a lioness that feeds on people.

"Fool." Cassidy mummers. She walked up and smacked the guard in the stomach and took his gun over before anyone can react. She fired six shots, disabling the three guards.

"Shit!" A guard groaned. He can't believe the girl just shot them because they told her to wait. He's about to curse even more when he saw Cassidy tilting the gun to his side, and he quickly shut up. The look in Cassidy's eyes showed complete ignorance to human lives, and he knows if he says one more word the girl will kill him.

"Wise." Cassidy complemented as she left the guards and broke into the bedroom. There, she saw a naked girl. Where's Han?

Han jumped out from behind the door and smacked her in the head with something. Cassidy groaned and turned around, her superhuman strength that she received from the transformation knocked Han off his feet. Cassidy held Han down and kept him there with her pistol.

"Cas?" Han asked. "What the hell? What did you do with my men?"

"I want the money you owe me." Cassidy said quickly. "All five hundred thousand dollars. I want them now."

"You can't just break into my place and want money!" Han complained, but Cassidy pushed him down. Han complied when he saw the Cassidy sticking the gun barrel that's still warm towards his leg. "Ok, ok. Follow me."

He led Cassidy to a safe, where he opened it and took out a stack of money and began counting.

What he didn't see was Cassidy taking a few steps back and lifting her pistol.

Bang. Han fell on the ground with a gunshot. Cassidy didn't even look at him as she ran out and, with four more gunshots, eliminated everyone that might connect her to the murder scene. After making sure everyone's dead, she walked back into the room and collected the money from the safe.

Cassidy was not quite a normal student. In fact, she's everything away from normal. After she left the orphanage and started going to school, she realized she needed a change. She doesn't want to be like millions of other students in the world. No, she wants to be special and powerful.

She found the feeling of power in killing. She enjoyed watching people dying before her. She enjoyed watching people kneeling before her, begging for mercy. She'd usually pretend to be nice and let the victim go. But just before the victim escapes she will shoot and kill the victim. This gives her satisfaction.

But at the same time she is also a patient girl. No matter how angry or excited she was, she always made sure everything's clear and left no loose ends. She placed logic before emotion, and that made her a terrifying killing machine.

Cassidy put all the money in the safe into a bag and left the warehouse. After a few minutes, she found herself in the largest construction material wholesale store in the city.

Two hours later, she left the store with tons of construction concretes in her protoss base and her hands empty.

It's not like she doesn't want to fight her way in and rob the materials, but even her can't kill hundreds of people and hide it for twelve hours.

The walk home was dull. Except when there was a drunk dude that tried to flirt with Cassidy. He got his throat slit.

Back home, Cassidy immediately locked the door and went into the Protoss base. The Nexus seemed messy with three million dollars worth of concrete and metal beside it.

Cassidy ordered the eight idol probes to deal with the concrete. The robots' jet pack glared and pushed them towards the pile. After getting close enough, they used their particle beams to dissemble the materials and carried them to the Nexus. And Cassidy saw the mineral deposit growing.

Satisfied, Cassidy exited the area and got on her bed. She needs to rest well for the event tomorrow.

* * *

Cassidy woke up five o'clock in the morning. The first thing she did was go into the Protoss base, and, just like she expected, the stack was gone.

"What's the current mineral amount?" She asked.

"1640 units." The adjacent replied.

"I see." Cassidy replied and exited the base. She ate two pieces of bread before going to the sofa. She clicked something, and the surface of the sofa was removed, revealing a box of weapons, including a pistol, daggers, poison...Anything and everything Cassidy needs to kill.

Considering she's not going to return here...ever...Cassidy took everything she could. The pistol was abandoned, but she took all the knifes and daggers. She took the poison and stored them in a small box.

Cassidy walked before a mirror and took off her pajamas. Half naked, she went to the closet and took out a black t-shirt. She glanced at the concentrated wounds in the mirror before putting the t-shirt on. A final jacket finished her clothing.

Cassidy put eight more daggers into the inner pockets of her jacket. She gave one final glare at the room she had been in for decades before turning around swiftly and leaving.

* * *

"Nice jacket Cas." A teenager said to Cassidy as she sat down. The girl frowned for a second before realizing she never wore this jacket to school before. It was specially designed for a killer, not a student.

"Hey Brian." Cassidy replied in a cold tone. She's not exactly an outcast in the school, but she didn't have any close friends. Even though Cassidy did her best to act like a normal girl, the scornful attitude she feels about life is still keeping others away, even though they didn't know why.

"You know, we can be friends." Brian said as he sat down on a seat beside Cassidy. He's a nice guy. Cassidy will give him that. But she doesn't feel anything to him. To be precise, she doesn't feel anything to anyone.

She doesn't hate those she kill and she doesn't love those around her. She likes to keep things logical.

"What's stopping you?" Cassidy asked with a slight smile.

Brian smiled warmly. "We are having some fun outside. You are more than welcomed to join us." He invited. Cassidy wanted to refuse, but then she felt adjacent talking to her through the nerve cord.

"You should go, executor." He said. "According to the oracles, the crystal would be landing in the field and will bring everyone in the field to another dimension, giving them control of a Terran commanding center and thus the entire Terran army."

Cassidy smiled. "Sure, why not." Brian's obviously confused, but he quickly recovered and lead Cassidy outside. There, a group of teenagers were playing.

"Hey Brian." A few of them immediately walked up and hailed Brian. Cassidy was ignored, but she didn't care. She's not here for fun. Instead, she kept on staring into the sky, looking for any sign of a dimensional piercing crystal.

"Cassidy! Cassidy!" Brian suddenly called up. Cassidy frowned in annoyance but still walked over. "We are having a soccer game. Do you want to join us?" He invited.

"No thanks." Cassidy replied coolly.

"Eh. Ok." Brian said as he turned around and joined his friends, slightly embarrassed.

Cassidy kept on looking into the air. A few minutes later, she suddenly saw a blink of light. With astonishing speed, the crystal stoke down, and a round of red light exploded, consuming everyone in the field, including Cassidy.

* * *

 **First chapter of the week.**

 **Enjoy.**


	4. Naboo (2K)

Cassidy felt everything around is so blurry. After a period of time that she has no idea how long, she found herself in lying face down on a solid ground.

She immediately stood up, her hands reaching inside her pockets to make sure she can do something if there might be threats. However, there were no threat. There were just twelve other teenagers lying beside them.

Then she felt something huge beside them. It's a huge, metal structure.

"It's a Terran commanding center, the human version of a Nexus." Cassidy felt the adjacent talking to her, and immediately felt a wave of relief. If she lost her Protoss base, then she'd really be in trouble.

"Why is it in the open?" Cassidy asked.

She could almost feel the adjacent smiling. "The Terran are not even close to us in term of technology. They don't have the ability to create a half dimension and then store the structures and armies in there by warping technology. So they can only put there buildings out in the open and hope they are not under assault."

"That's stupid." Cassidy agreed as the others started to wake up. Before they could be scared, however, they heard a voice calling them from the commanding center. It's a Terran adjacent.

"You OK?" Brian asked as he walked to Cassidy, slightly frightened. He's not easily scared, but to be teleported to somewhere completely different. This is scary. Still, he did his best to calm his friends. To his surprise, Cassidy doesn't seem scared at all.

"Yeh." Cassidy gave a strange look at Brian, as if wondering what the man is thinking. For her entire life she had been dealing with criminals who would turn on you as soon as they think the profit is greater than the risk. To be cared off is completely new for her.

"What do we do?" The teenagers started to gather. They kept a distance away from the commanding center, but it's not like they can just stay away forever. They need to go home, and whoever is in that commanding center is their best chance.

"We go in and find out what happened." Brian suddenly said. His voice was decisive. The other teenagers looked at each other before nodding in agreement. The crowd walked into the commanding center. Brian was the first.

As soon as they entered the metal door, they were surprised by the futuristic structures. Different types of computers were everywhere. Metal arms were moving around the spaces. A voice came from a metal wall, and they turned and saw a robot standing there.

What came next was quite familiar for Cassidy. The terran adjacent told the crowd how their universe was in danger and how they are the only hopes of reviving their culture and their people. Most of the teenagers seemed thrilled about being able to lead an army, but Cassidy smirked inside. To her, only real interest matters.

Suddenly, a loud blast came from the walls of the commanding center. The group shook from the impact of the blast and some of them fell on the ground. Cassidy saw Brian was about to fall and caught him just in time. She doesn't know why she did that.

"What was that?" Brian had no time to thank his friend. He turned to the adjacent as the blasts continued.

A screen flashed and revealed the image of a group of metal robots. "This is a squad of B-1 battle droids." The adjacent reported. "They are blasting the walls with a type of energy weapon." A red bar was shown. "Hit point was decreased by 0.9 %. Retaliation is advised."

"We're in Star Wars?" Someone cried.

"What army do we have?" A girl shouted.

"None." Adjacent replied calmly with her female, mechanical voice. "We have not enough minerals to construct additional SCVs. There are five SCVs available, but they can't reach the mounted battle droids in the air."

"What can we do?" The girl asked loudly. The droids were continuing their assault, decreasing the HP even further.

With a series of mechanical sounds, a row of terran armor was brought out by the mechanical arms. "You can get in your battle suit and shoot the enemies down." The adjacent said.

"Are you kidding me?" A male teenager complained. "I am not going out there. We'll be blasted to pieces!"

"The commander armor can withstand five shots from the laser." Adjacent reported. "Your Gauss rifles can one shot these droids. Your chance of victory is great."

The teenager was about to say something else, but Brian walked up and allowed the mechanical arms to help him wear the armor. "We can't become heroes if all we do is hide behind whenever there's danger." He replied to the questioning eyes. "We need to get into the fight ourselves." The wearing finished, and he took over a Gauss rifle with his right hand. "Now, let's take down these clankers."

The others looked at each other before bursting out a loud cheer. Cassidy smiled at the effect of Brian's encouragement. She is like a parasite on the Terran commanders. The stronger the Terran commanders get, the stronger she will be. If Terran is SHIELD, then she's HYDRA.

* * *

Outside the commanding center, a squad of ten battle droids, all mounted on floating motorcycles, were blasting away on the metal surface. Their orders were to eliminate all threats, and a huge alloy building seemed like a threat to their computer brains.

Red beams continued to come out of their blasters, only to bounce off the surface of the commanding center.

Suddenly a droid saw a few metal figures jumping out from behind the building. It hesitated, as if considering whether or not they are enemies. But the metal figure lifted something, and a wave of metal rounds came out of that something. The droid could barely say anything before it's torn into pieces.

"Blast them!" A droid commander ordered. The remaining droids turned and fired at the figures.

"Take them down!" A commander shouted as he unleashed his rifle among the droids. Unlike the droid blaster, the marine Gauss rifles focused on its firing rate. The endless rounds easily took the droids off one by one. The battle droids, instead of flying back and report the situation like anyone rational would do, stayed and fought till the end.

Cassidy fired a single bullet and took off the head of the last droid. As the fight happened, she was more focused on observing the other commanders than trying to kill the droids. If she did try to kill the droids, they'd be dead very quickly.

But instead she was seeing how the others were doing. One of them had four kills. Cassidy remembered his name to be something like Victor. Another cold looking girl took two kills.

As the droids dyed off, the commanders took off their face masks and uncovered their faces, revealing their happy expressions. What they did was the first step of transforming from a teenager to a warrior.

"That was too easy!"

"Those clankers suck!" Some of them started smiling and cheering, enjoying the relief after a period of intensity. To them, dodging laser fires and firing rifles at something can be more than intense. But they were interrupted by a not so welcomed voice.

"I hate to break it to you." A girl with black hair said as she walked up to the smiling crowd. "But according to multiple details, it appears like we are on a planet Naboo that's currently blockaded by the Trade Federation. Ring any bells? That was just a glimpse of the entire army of the Trade Federation. If we are to stop the invasion, we will need more than a few men and women in armor. We are going to need an army." Cassidy smirked. The girl is a bit smarter, not much. If she was a bit smarter than she is now, then she should've kept quite, like Cassidy. After all, she doubted the commanders would be happy about being lectured, especially after overcoming the challenge.

Just like Cassidy thought, some of the commanders were obviously angered. They exchanged a look but ultimately kept quiet as they knew the girl was right.

"It's fine Caity." Brian did his best to calm the conflict that was very close to taking place. "Adjacent, get those SCVs here and take these broken droids back and see if they can be turned to minerals."

"Yes sir!" The SCVs exited the commanding center and started collecting the droid debris. Caity smirked mockingly at the others.

"Commander, the ten battle droids increased our mineral amount by 100 minerals." An SCV reported after a while.

"Adjacent, how many minerals does a marine cost?" Caity asked.

"A normal Terran marine costs 50 minerals, including the cloning of the soldier and the manufacturing of the weapon and the armor." The adjacent reported.

"You said a 'normal marine.'" Cassidy suddenly said. "Are there elite marines?"

"Yes." Adjacent replied. "Double the resources required, and an elite special forces marine with additional battle experience and stronger weapon and armor can be produced."

"Just a question." Caity suddenly said. "What happens if our orders are contradicting? Who will the soldiers obey?" Cassidy glanced at Caity. The girl might be the only one realizing this problem. A conflict in authority might be a huge problem in the future when there's a conflict of interest.

"The soldiers can be neurally manipulated to obey certain commanders. They are currently designed to obey all the commanders, but they can be adjusted to obey certain commanders on top of others."

Brian nodded."Produce two normal marines." He ordered before turning to the other commanders. "According to the Star Wars Phantom Menace plot, it's going to be a while after the formal invasion that the Jedis finally came in and saved the day. For now, we need to get as much army as possible before that, or we'll be in real trouble when the fighting starts. We'll be torn to pieces by the endless droids."

The group nodded in agreement. Most of them are truly impressed by the man's bravery.

"Here's the plan." Brian ordered. "As soon as the marines come out, we'll get into smaller groups and start hunting down stray droids and bring them back for resources. The SCVs will be collecting tree branches and stone fragments and turn them to minerals. The newly collected minerals will be transformed to marines and reinforce the front line. Is that clear?"

Everyone nodded.

"And, guys." Brian added. "We need to work together on this." He looked at Caity, who looked away and didn't respond.

* * *

In the Naboo forest, three armored figures were walking. Their rifles were raised in guarding position. One of them wore a grey commander armor, and the other two wore a blue marine armor.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of engine screaming. Three patrolling droids appeared out of nowhere and charged towards them in the air, their blasters firing red lasers. The marines immediately laid down on the ground, dodging the blasts. Their rifles fired, and the electromagnetic powered Gauss ammo shattered the droids. When the droids perished, a vehicle came out from behind and dragged the three pieces of useless metal away.

Things like this happened all around the forest. As the patrolling droids were eliminated, more and more marines were produced.

* * *

In the commanding center, the commanders watched as more and more barracks went up and more and more marines walked out.

"50 marine have already been made." Brian told his friends. "I have also took the liberty to produce two elite marines as bodyguards." Two elite marines were behind him. Their helmets, unlike the round helmet of normal marines, had a "T" symbol on them. Their Gauss rifles and armors were also stronger than those of normal marines.

"I am planning to give everyone some elite marines as bodyguards." Brian added. "After all, these soldiers can be made, but if we die, then we die forever. This is why there can never be too much protection for us." The others nodded in agreement. Protection detail can never be excessive.

Suddenly, they heard a marine reporting in the radio. "Sir? We found someone that's also fighting the droids. According to the data file, they are two Jedis and a Gungun."

The commanders exchanged a look."Bring them to the base." Brian ordered before closing the com and turning to his comrades. "Let's meet Kenobi and Qui-Gon."

"I didn't know about a military group on Naboo." Qui-Gon said as he, Kenobi, and Jar-Jar followed a marine through the woods. He saw many soldiers wearing armor and wielding projectile weapons that he had never seen before. This is strange. As far as he knew, neither the Gungun nor queen Amidala has a powerful army like this.

"Mesa haven't seen them." The Gungun beside them exclaimed.

"Are they enemies?" Kenobi asked. The young padawan is quite emotional. He silently rested his hand on his light saber.

"There's no proof that they are siding with the Federation." Qui-Gon explained. "In fact, we saw their soldiers destroying battle droids. Judging from the circumstance, they might be helpful in stopping the Federation invasion."

As the group continued, the trio saw a series of metal buildings, along with multiple armored, grey figures. All of them had different engravings on the helmet.

"Master Jedi." One of them who had a skull marking on his helmet walked up. "I wish I can say its a pleasure."

"It is a pleasure. You are?" Qui-Gon smiled warmly. There's a reason he's chosen for this diplomatic mission.

"We are a group from the race Terran." Brian said. "I am the leader of our people and the commander of our army."

"I didn't know anything about you." Qui-Gon said curiously. "And, I am not flattering myself, but I am quite familiar with most of the races in the galaxy."

"Logical." Brian replied as the trio started walking around the camp."Our people had been nomads and weren't really connected with the current republic. We prefer to stay with ourselves and develop technologies. Now, how may I help?"

Qui-Gon paused. "As you obviously know, the droid army of the Trade Federation is invading this planet. My padawan and I have been sent to investigate, but we were attacked and were forced to land here. Now, I am coming to you to ask for help." He bowed. "The republic is going to need your help in retaking Naboo."

"With all due respect." A female voice suddenly said from behind, and another figure with a scarlet rose on her helmet stepped up. "What can we receive by helping the republic?"

"You and your people will be free from harm and can continue your research in safety." Qui-Gon appealed.

The commanders exchanged a look. "We'll need to discuss about this privately." Cassidy said. The Jedi nodded, and the commanders walked aside.

"I think we should help the republic." Brian said. "After all, the republic is certainly going to win. We know that."

"The question is not whether we should join the republic or not, but instead about how we should fight this war." The male that Cassidy took notice of before, Victor, said. "I did some testing. The battle droid laser fire can one shot the armor of our marines, whereas our marines can one shot the droids. In general marines are stronger, but in a full scale war we'd be outnumbered and outgunned. Our casualties will be heavy. Many men will die."

"Then we regain our losses after the war." Caity argued. Her helmet was painted with a red dagger. "We can make a deal with the republic and take control of all the disabled droids after the fight is over. Those droids should be more than enough to supplement our losses."

"This can work." Brian nodded. "And most importantly we can receive the good will of the republic and the Naboo queen."

On the other end, the Jedis were also discussing.

"Why are we asking for help?" Kenobi asked impatiently. "Shouldn't we be rescuing the queen and bring her back to Coruscant?"

"You need to look past the matters at hand." Qui-Gon explained. "Queen Amidala is not going to abandon her people, which means sooner or later she'll be returning to liberate her planet. In that case, we'll have to fight the entire army of the Federation. A little help can always be welcomed."

"But we have the republic as backing..." Kenobi continued.

Qui-Gon signed. He looked around and made sure no one's watching. "The republic is not as efficient as many might think." He whispered. "Chancellor Valorium is not a decisive leader, and it is highly unlikely that he will be able to convince the senate to take aggressive actions against the Federation. In that case, we'll need every bit of help we can get."

They saw the commanders walked towards them. "Master Jedi." Victor said. "Let's make a deal. We'll support the republic in the war against the Federation with all our might, but in return we want all the prizes from the war."

Qui-Gon frowned. He doesn't exactly have the authority of making deals, but if things really come to that, he'll not hesitate in doing what's best for the republic. "That's a deal." He said. "But that is only a full scale war breaks out." Brian nodded. "Now, stay here and keep on harassing the droid army until we return. But make no full scale attack. The droid army is far too large for you to take down alone."

"I see." Brian nodded, and the two Jedis and the Gungun turned around and walked off into the forest.

* * *

 **Second chapter in the week:)**

 **The team is starting to prosper. Next chapter will include more action, I hope.**


	5. Conflict (K)

Beside the Protoss Nexus, Cassidy was practicing combat.

She wore the executor armor the adjacent showed her previously. Two psi blades were her major weapon. The ark like psi amplifier on her back allowed her the ability to create psionic storms, create hallucination, and use feedback on enemy mechanical units. It also gave her the ability to form a psionic blast and use it as a ranged attack against enemies. A plasma shield was positioned around her body, keeping her safe.

A Protoss zeolet was positioned before her. It's a normal zeolet with two psi blades on his arms and a plasma shield. He was the first Protoss soldier created, and Cassidy turned him to a zeolet after spending 1000 minerals. For now, he's her sparring partner.

Cassidy first dashed at the zeolet, her blades were lifted before her chest to protect herself. The zeolet, however, easily dodged the charge and sliced her on the back, causing a small ripple on her shield.

"Your skills with the blade is weak, Executor." The zeolet communicated with Cassidy through the Khala. True, Cassidy is a great killer, but she hadn't had too much experience with melee combat. Most of her actions were completed via tools like firearm, poison, or the use of the element of surprise. She's no match for a Protoss warrior who had been in training for centuries, at least not in terms of pure melee.

Cassidy nodded and returned to the fight.

Three minutes later, a battered Cassidy was standing in the Nexus, talking with the adjacent.

"Is there any method that I can become stronger?" She asked. She's fully aware that her main strength lies in her Protoss army, but she doesn't have it yet, which means she'll have to rely on her own skills. She was pretty confident before. Not now. "Is there any way to improve my psionic level?"

Psionic level is a very interesting thing. The higher level someone is, he or she can not only do more tricks but can also have stronger abilities. For example, the psionic storm created by a level 10 archon is so much stronger by that created by a level 8 high templer.

Cassidy's current psi level is level 8. However, she's not even close to half as good as a high templer simply cause her time with psi had been quite short. A normal high templer would have practiced for centuries before they became a zeolet, and then they'd have to spend hundreds of years more to become a high templer. As a sixteen year old girl, she's young.

In that case, she'd have to use level to supplement her lack of experience.

The adjacent obviously hesitated. "What?" Cassidy pushed. "Say it."

"There is a way to increase the psionic level of an individual. That is by absorbing a substance known as the terrazine. It's first used by a Protoss fraction called the Tal'darim." The mechanical, purifier adjacent is obviously disliking the idea. "The use of terrazine can lead to multiple, severe negative impacts, including hallucination, confusion of thought, and always makes the user overaggressive."

"Is there any terrazine in the base?" Cassidy asked curiously. "Don't look at me like this. Terrazine can be a last resort, used when I'm close to death."

"Terrazine can only be received after you unlock the Tal'darim branch." The adjacent replied.

"Unlock?" Cassidy smirked. "We're not playing a game here. There's no need for balance. Can't you just give me the freaking substance?"

"Only a Tal'darim Nexus is able to formulate the substance." The adjacent said. "This Nexus is a Daelaam Nexus. A Tal'darim Nexus will require 4000 minerals to create and will grant you the ability of creating Tal'darim units and structures."

"Is it worth it?" Cassidy asked.

"Tal'darim are known for their ability in combat and their loyalty towards the strongest." Adjacent said. "But that is the problem. You are weaker than any ascendant in the Tal'darim army. Even a few supplicants can defeat you. If you want to command the Tal'darim, you must be stronger and use the terrazain, which had terrible consequences."

"I see." Cassidy replied as her armor disappeared, and her body exited the protoss base.

* * *

The Terran base had been enlarged by at least fifty percent. Blue, steel framed structures were placed on an area cleared out by the SCVs.

A few bunkers have been constructed around the perimeter, and ten marines had been positioned in each bunker. Cassidy walked by those bunkers and into the commanding center.

"Report the situation." She ordered.

"Current unit count: 100 marine. 20 elite marine. 3 bunkers. 5 SCVs." The adjacent said. "But the droids are starting to notice us. Their patrol groups have been increasing and are now scouting for our base. It appears that the main droid army have already marched into and have taken control of the capital city of Naboo."

It's been two days since the Jedis left. "Is there are news from the Jedis?" She asked. The droid army is already onto them, and if they fight this battle alone, they will perish.

"Negative." Cassidy nodded and walked into a side room of the commanding center.

A blonde male was in the room. Brian.

"We need to do something about the droids army." Cassidy said matter-of-factly. "If we don't, then sooner or later the droids will be able to discover us, and then we'd be in trouble. Thousands of droids can easily wipe us out. It's not going to matter if we have hundreds of marines and a few bunkers."

Brian signed and touched his eyebrows, frustrated. Cassidy frowned. The man doesn't have what it takes to be a ruler. He's soft and indecisive. He's a nice guy, but leader's aren't supposed to be nice.

Normally it's not her concern, but if she wants to be strong, she has to pest off a stronger figure. That's why she'll do everything that's necessary to make the Terran stronger. And an organization is only as strong as its leader.

Cassidy sat beside Brian. "Is there something that's bothering you?" She asked.

"I am well aware of the danger we are in." Brian said tiredly. "But there's little we can do. The Jedis are not back, but the droid army had been closing in on us. The droids are hundreds of times our forces. We also lack fighters and pretty much anything that can hit air due to the lack of vespine gas. I'm out of tricks." He slammed the table before him.

"You need to calm yourself." Cassidy reassured. "You are our leader. If you lose your confidence, then we are really doomed. But if you keep calm, then we can always find a way out of fire."

"I hope so." Brian said, not really calming down.

Cassidy signed. If there's something she learned from years of struggle, it is that hiding and ignoring the problem is never a valid option. She took out a piece of paper and a pencil and placed it before the table in front. Brian looked at her, confused.

"The problem we are having," Cassidy started. "Is that the droids outnumber and outgun us. But our marines are more agile and slightly stronger than the droids, yes?"

Brian nodded.

"Then we take down their number advantage." Cassidy drew two sides on the paper. One of them had 100 circles. The other had one square. In a full scale, we can't take the droid army down. But what happens if we approaches, take a few shots, and then run when the main droid force engages?"

"What?" Brian frowned.

"This is something the rebels did while fighting the empire. The rebel fighters would hide in the empire controlled city. Then they would pop out of hiding, take out a group of empire patrols or even just stray soldiers. Fighting in the cities can be advantageous to our marines as we are way more stronger and quicker than droids. If the reinforcements the Federation sends are too small, then we take them out. But if the reinforcements are too strong for us, then we can set a few charges and bolt. Those clankers can never catch up to us." She finished.

"But we still have no way of taking down the entire droid army." Brian objected. "Picking off random droids can't help by that much. The droids outnumber as a hundred to one. If we get surrounded, then we will have no chance of escape at all. It's too risky."

"No it's not." Cassidy said, slightly annoyed at the cautious of the man. "Eventually the Trade Federation will be suffering so much losses that they must pull back their army and only defend important areas, or they might risk losing too many droids. In that case, we'd be able to take back most of Naboo and be in a dominating situation when the Jedis return."

"You might be right." Brian finally said after a while. "Adjacent, tell the commanders to assemble here."


	6. Hit&Run (2K)

"What's up?" As the commanders arrived at the commanding center, Victor asked.

"Cas." Brian nodded at Cassidy, who stepped up and explained her plan.

"... Understand?"Cassidy finally asked. The commanders frowned.

"This might work." Victor shrugged. "And if it works, then we'd be in an upper hand. However..."

Caity took the lead."However, if this plan fails, then we'd be very dead. There's no way for us to escape from Naboo if we are to fail."

"Failing is unlikely as long as you don't seriously mess up." Cassidy said as she tapped her helmet. "I ordered the adjacent to hack into the internet system of Naboo and downloaded the entire map of the city, also, the adjacent hacked the security cameras, giving us whole control of the enemy movements. We can hit where our enemies aren't." She said confidently.

"Wait, wait, wait." Someone suddenly said. "Are we leading the attack? It's too risky for us."

Cassidy smirked scornfully. "If you can't even bear the risk of leading an attack that is unlikely to cause you any harm, then why are you here? What value can you contribute to us?" The commanders frowned at her cruel tone.

"Cas..." Brian suddenly said. "Thank you for the plan. I believe it is going to work." He turned to the other commanders. "But not all of us are necessary to fight on the front line. Not all of us are good with guns." He concluded, and everyone nodded in agreement. Everyone except Cassidy.

"What were you thinking back there?" As soon as the commanders left, Cassidy turned to Brian.

"That's something I wanted to ask you." Brian replied angrily. "We don't force people to fight for us! We are better than that Cas. If we do force them to give their lives for us, then how are we different from the Sith? Then what difference will we make?"

"Your action is merely giving them an excuse to be cowards." Cassidy said. "Not that many people will fight and bleed if they understand they don't have to do that. Today you can protect and tolerate their weakness, fine. But what about tomorrow, and the day after that? If we are to success in the long run, we need rules and discipline, and we need to have ways to enforce those rules. Even against one of our own."

"What are you saying?" Brian raged. "That we should force them to become fearless warriors or die in the process?"

"I am saying you..." Cassidy pointed at Brian. "need to be more logical. You are no longer a random teenager that only has to take care of himself but a leader who's responsible for the survival of the Terran race." She concluded. "You need to learn what has to be done."

Brian turned around. "You're right." He whispered. "I am responsible for my people, and that includes everyone that came here with us." Cassidy signed and walked out of the commanding center.

Brian is refusing to change, but that's not his choice.

* * *

In the capital city of Theed, a droid patrol was walking through the streets. Several people stared at them before walking away. The people in a conquered city are usually not too friendly to the conquerors.

Suddenly the droids saw multiple blue armored figures walking out of the corner. They paused, confused as their programming didn't tell them what to do. But they soon realized what they should have done as the marines fired.

With a series of "dadada" sound, the droid patrol was torn open. A few droids that survived did their best to fire back, only to get put down.

When a battalion of droid reinforcement arrived, all they saw was an empty street with twenty dead droids. The ambush squad had been long gone.

Sabotages like this happened all over the city. To the citizens of Naboo, this is a sleepless night. For the entire time they were hiding in their homes and praying the battle will not accidentally get them involved.

In an alley way, Victor and ten marines formed a wall of fire with their rifles, cutting down any droid that tried to walk around the corner. Whenever droids appear, it takes them a few seconds to locate the enemy before firing. None of them had the chance, and the droid debris piled higher and higher.

The angered droid commander finally decided to bring in some destroyers. But what they didn't know was that all of their movements were spotted by the adjacent, who notified the small hit squad. When the destroyer arrived, turned its shield on, and engaged with all its fury, it met no opposition.

The only thing it saw was a charger.

Boom! An explosion added a dozen more droids to the casualty list.

Victor, who was getting further and further away, smiled.

* * *

The previously well decorated palace is now crowded with security droids with red marking on their head. The ownership have recently shifted from queen Amidala to Viceroy Nute Gunray without much resistance. The Viceroy, however, is not feeling very victorious.

"Someone tell me what's going on!" Gunray barked as he heard the sound of rifles and blasters singing in the air, along with some random explosions. Even as a merchant rather than a general he still knew something's wrong. He looked around, as if looking for a scapegoat to express his anger. "Who's attacking us?"

"Viceroy." A commander droid walked up. Its computer brain didn't include anything about emotion and therefore the wrath of his leader."Our patrols in the city have been ambushed. Hundreds of security battle droids have been reported destroyed. Our control of the city is dwindling."

"Activate the droid army. Find out the attackers and eliminate them." Gurney ordered before turning to his adviser. "Queen Amidala and the Jedis have already fled. Who might be attacking us?" His adviser merely shrugged.

In a platform before the palace, thousands of battle droids were taken out from their armored transports and then activated. Activating thousands of battle droids can take a lot of energy, which means they can only be activated when necessary.

Unfortunately, as the thousands of battle droids marched towards the battlefield, all they saw were broken droids. No attacker was within their sight.

The commander droid looked at the awkward scene, speechless. "Fan out and find the attackers." He ordered, and the clumsy machines fanned out and scanned the area.

* * *

In a small house in Theed, several figures in blue armor and one figure in grey armor were sitting there. Two frightened human being were beside. They are the owner of the house. The marines didn't do anything to them, not because they don't harm the innocent, but because their commander stopped them.

"What do we do now, sir?" A soldier in blue armor asked. He has a cross on his helmet, representing a higher rank than his comrades.

"Be patient, Captain Delta." In the grey armor, Victor replied. That was when he heard three knocks on the door. Two quick ones and one short one. Victor nodded to a soldier, who went to the door and opened it. Two other soldiers raised their weapons at the entrance.

Luckily for them, a female figure came in. She wore a casual dress instead of the grey commander armor. "Victor." Cassidy said as the marines backed off. "How was the fighting?"

"My brothers and I took down dozens of droids and got out without any trouble." Victor replied. "But now the main battle droids forces have blocked the entrance and are searching the city. We are trapped here, for now."

"Don't worry." Cassidy calmed her friend. "The amount of energy the droid army need to stay activated means that every minute the city is secured has a heavy price, and the clumsiness of the current droids means that they can't be efficient enough to go through all the houses and find out the disguised marines. For example, I walked past a droid party and they didn't do a single thing to me. Sooner or later viceroy Gurney will be forced to deactivate the droids. That's when we will strike again."

"I hope you know what you are doing." Victor said as he turned around and left. Cassidy looked at his sight and sank into consideration. As the only commander beside from her who led the attack, the man is brave and open to advice. He'll make a good general of the Terran dominion.

* * *

Leaving the safe house and reaching a dark alley, Cassidy looked around before going into the Protoss Nexus. She immediately changed into the executor armor. Just before she left the Nexus, she contacted with the adjacent through the Khala.

 _Adjacent?_

 _Executor?_

 _I am granting you access to all the vision the Terran has control of. Inform me of a route that can not be seen by the Terran and take out droids._

 _As you wish, executor._

 _Good. And wrap the destroyed droids here._

She left the base and was back at the alley.

 _Three meters forward. Left. 5 droids._

Cassidy walked up a few steps and turned left and collided with five metal clankers. The leading one stood confused at the blonde, braided, and armored girl. Its intelligence was too immature to determine if she's a friend of foe. That was when it saw two silver blades extending out of the girl's arms.

 _Hush!_

Cassidy stepped up and slashed her right blade forward. She felt no resistance at all as the three metal droids in range were severed into six pieces. The upper parts slides onto the ground as the lower parts simply fell.

The two lucky droids in the back immediately raised their blasters. This is where the efficiency of machines are shown. They don't get afraid or shocked. They simply act.

The red blaster fires were about to hit Cassidy when a blue shield blocked them. It's the thing that keeps Protoss warriors alive during intense battles. Plasma shield.

The blasters barely caused a mere wave on the executor class plasma shield when contact, which immediately disappeared as the blaster was absorbed. Cassidy used the chance as she charged forward and dismantled the two droids.

As the droids fell on the ground, five light beams hit the metal scraps, and the scraps started to disappear. Cassidy turned around and left without looking at the warping material. She has just started.

* * *

 _Turn Right. Three droids._

Hush!

 _Turn Left. Six droids._

Hush! Hush!

 _Take a step forward and turn right._

Hush!

As Cassidy continuously turned battle droids into scrap metal into minerals, the commander droid finally realized something's wrong. Not knowing who it's against because no droid reported back, and thinking the rebels are gathering together for a final fight, the commander foolishly gave out the order of dispatching the entire army to the last point of contact.

A few minutes later, five destroyers, as long as hundreds of battle droids, marched on to the position that the droids were disappearing.

A battle droid turned around the corner, and ran into another figure. The droid readied its weapon, but immediately relaxed as it realized the one it ran into was another droid. It looked around and realized the place is crowded with droids and no attacker.

In the other end of the city, Cassidy jumped off a roof and into a squad of eight droids.

Silver blades filled the path.

* * *

"My lord." The image of commander droid leading the army was projected in a hologram before viceroy Gunrey. "Multiple fractions of our forces have been sabotaged. The attackers escaped before our main forces arrived. More than two hundred droids have disappeared."

"Locate the attackers and eliminate them!"Gunrey ordered loudly. Destroyed droids means lost credits.

"We can't." The droid replied straightforwardly. "The attackers are avoiding contact with our main army, and small fractions of droids that the attackers do attack are destroyed too quickly."

Gunrey cursed. But he then came to a realization. He doesn't need to take complete control of Naboo. After all, according to the deal he made with the Sith Lord, he needs to be a threat to the republic. Investing army and thus large amount of credits in a useless capital is useless.

"Pull back the droid army and guard the royal palace." Gunrey ordered. "Let those attackers have the city for now. There's nothing they can gain from expelling us. A small group of underground fighters can't go against the Federation."

What he doesn't know is that all Cassidy wanted was to stall time and wait until the Jedis return. All this hit and run are just a mean to keep the droids occupied and the Terran base safe. Of course, a few hundred droids worth of minerals are also a reason.

On top of a house, Cassidy watched as the droids turned around and walked towards the center of the city, which was where the royal palace was. Her plan is watching. Her lips curled up into a smirk, that was when she heard someone talking in the com.

Victor.

"The droids are pulled back." His voice sounded amazed and impressed. "Your plan worked. Now what?"

"Leave the marines in the city." Cassidy ordered. "You and I will return to the commanding center and wait until the Jedis come."

"You go." Victor replied. "I'll stay here and prevent the droids from doing anything unexpected."

Cassidy frowned. "The droids have already pulled back. It is unlikely something will go wrong. There's no need for you to be here." She said quietly.

"I am staying here." Victor said slowly but surely. "I'd rather stay here in the battlefield than go back and sit and wait for the Jedis to come."

Cassidy nodded. "I am giving you the command of all the Strike teams in Naboo, which includes 80 marines. Make good use of them. And, be safe." She said. "Marines can be remade. You can't." She turned around and jumped off the building and headed for the commanding center.

* * *

 **I created the story yesterday, and, surprisingly, saw there's already 3 favorites and 5 alerts. It seems like my story is way more welcomed than I thought...**

 **Please review for any type of comments or questions. I will certainly reply the questions, and usually the comments give me the power to update the story as I know my stories are read and welcomed.**


	7. Failure (2K)

The trip out of Theed was simple. The small droid force guarding the gate went down to an attack two hours ago, and all Cassidy saw at the gate was scattered droid bodies. She walked past them without collecting them because she might be seen by the others commanders.

After half an hour of walk, Cassidy found herself back in the base. What she didn't expect was the sight of a few odd looking structures. SCVs were walking in and out of the building and transporting a greenish gas in a container to the Terran commanding Center. Instantly Cassidy knew what it is. Vespine Gas.

Cassidy walked into the Commanding Center, where a man was already waiting for her.

"Congratulations on the attack." Brian said with a smile as he stood up. "The droids are now pushed back, and now we can safely wait for the Jedis to return."

Cassidy smiled in return, even though she didn't really feel any satisfaction. Despite the temporary failure, the droid army still stands strong. It's too early to celebrate. "I can see the attack was not the only good news." She said. "It seems like we have found our way to a higher tech."

"Keen as always." Brian praised before turning to a computer screen and pressed something, which created a display of the current resources. Cassidy saw the number representing Vespine Gas has just passed five hundred and is now steadily increasing.

"As we were expanding one of the SCVs found three vespine geysers." Brian explained. "I ordered them to construct refineries on the geysers, and a few hours later, here we are." He said with a wide smile. "Do you know what this means?" He asked, not expecting an answer.

"I do." Cassidy joked, to her own disgust, but she needs to play the role of a girl who is intelligent and funny at the same time. It will hopefully make her more trustworthy. "It means you are about to say something important."

Brian smiled. "This means we will be able to tech up to much stronger vehicles and ships. We will be able to construct battlecruisers after a period. We will soon have the power to wipe out every single darkness in the world. Whether it's the Trade Federation, the Sith lords, or even Palpatine." He stated.

"Convincing. But I don't think battlecruisers are that cheap." Cassidy cut her friend off. "We're going to need a lot of vespine gas if we are to construct a battlecruiser, right adjacent?"

"The construction of a battlecruiser will need 40000 minerals and 30000 vespine gas." The adjacent reported. "We currently have 2100 minerals and 512 vespine gas. The vespine geysers will run out in five days and will provide us 3200 vespine gas in total."

"Damn it Cas. You can always spoil the mood." Brian cursed.

Cassidy merely shrugged. "However, we will be able to construct other smaller ships." She said slowly. "In that way, we will have the capability of launching ail assaults on both the heavily protected palace of Theed and the commanding ship in space. Plus, the vespine gas can also be used on creating vehicles such as..." She took a glance at the screen. "Seige tanks. So you see, I can also lighten up the mood." She had a big smile on her.

"You're right." Brian grinned and turned to the adjacent. "Order the SCVs to construct a Starport and construct vikings and banshees as soon as there are enough gas. The ratio between vikings and banshees is 3:1, which means for every one banshee constructed, three vikings will be made."

"Yes sir." The adjacent replied.

"And, construct a tech lab to one of the barracks. What's the research price for combat shield?" Cassidy suddenly asked.

"Combat shield takes 100 minerals and 100 vespine gas to research, and will turn the cost of marines from 50 to 75 minerals. All the marines without shields can be returned to the barracks and rearmed with a cost of 25 minerals."

"Research combat shield and add that to all the marines yet to be made." Cassidy ordered and turned to Brian, who was slightly confused. "There are two upgrades for marines." She explained. "Combat shield and Stim pack. Stim will decrease the HP of the marines, and since medivacs can be a huge commitment of resources, it's a bad idea for now. Combat shield, on the other hand, provides the marines with a huge, metal shield that can be used to block the blaster fires. That can save lives."

Brian nodded. "Good idea." He said. "I totally missed that."

"No one's perfect." Cassidy said. "Now, if you will excuse me." She turned around and left the commanding center, passing Amy as she came in. Brian watched as she left the building before smiling.

* * *

"Commander." When Cassidy walked out of the commanding center, she was met with three elite marines. The leading one reported. "My brothers and I have been assigned to protect you."

Cassidy frowned, but then she remembered. Just before the Jedi came, Brian mentioned something about assigning elite units to protect the commanders. These elite units will be the guardians of the commanders and will be completely loyal to them.

Personally Cassidy doesn't find the need to be protected. After all, she has an entire Protoss base with her. Still, it can't hurt to have some help. That's why she simply nodded to the guards and turned around and walked to a supply depot.

In the Starcraft game, supply depots are used to provide supplies for Terran, acting similarly to zerg overlords and protoss pylons. In reality, supply depots provide the necessities human being needs, including food, water, and a living place. Cassidy walked into her own depot and closed the door. The guards stood outside as guards.

Sitting on the bed, Cassidy talked to the Protoss adjacent.

 _Adjacent. Take control of the surveillance system and make sure the Terran have no idea what I am doing._

 _Yes. Executor._

She closed her eyes, and her body gradually disappeared.

* * *

In the Nexus, Cassidy stood expressionless at the bar that shows the amount of minerals. This is probably the only place she doesn't need to hide her true nature. Outside, she has to be a normal commander. Only here can she be the efficient, cruel killer that does anything and everything needed to reach her goal.

The mineral bar showed the number 1790. Most of those numbers came from droids she slaughtered back in Theed.

Unfortunately for Cassidy, that was barely enough to construct a sentinel. The powerful units such as Motherships and Carriers are nowhere to be seen. Even Stalkers can't be made due to her lack in vespine gas. She still needs to parasite off the stronger Terran. This fact angers her, but she doesn't have a choice. Hell, she doesn't even have a ship to get off the planet if she want to!

All Protoss ships need vespine gas, which is exactly why she's here.

 _Adjacent, do you have any suggestions of ways of gathering vespine gas?_

 _We can construct a refinery on a geyser, but that will be spotted by the Terran._

 _That's a bad idea. Our secrecy is the only way to keep us safe before we have a real army._

 _Then I'm out of suggestions, Executor._

 _...Fine._

Cassidy signed. But if she can't have an army to achieve her goals, then she might as well use herself as the weapon. This goes back to the use of Terrazine, which she doesn't have access to. A Tal'darim Nexus needs 4000 minerals. She has 1790.

But Terrazine is not the only way of getting stronger. In the game, one main difference between the hero units and normal units is that hero units have powerful abilities that normal units don't have.

For example, without abilities, Artanis is a good fighter, but ultimately weak. A group of zerglings can take him out. However, with his three active abilities(Lightening Dash, Resurgence, and Astral Wind), and one passive ability(Force of Will), Artanis can take out an army with the proper tactics.

Abilities are a key part of strength.

Cassidy knows that. She turned to the adjacent once again.

 _Adjacent, teach me ways to use the PSI energy._

Cassidy has access to PSI energy after the transformation. But she doesn't know how to use it. A true Protoss warrior can use the PSI energy to enhance his/her weapon and armor and use them to help in combat. For example, adapts can use PSI to teleport away, so can Stalkers. Zeolets can use PSI to turn their own bodies into energy form and charge at their enemies, helping the melee warriors to close the distance.

 _I suggest you to go to the zeolet. They are better at combat than me._

 _I see._

Cassidy nodded and walked out the Nexus, where the Protoss zeolet she created was meditating. He opened his eyes when Cassidy approached.

 _Executor?_

 _Zeolet. You are able to use charge, right?_

 _Yes...I can transform my body into energy and dash at the enemy._

 _Teach me._

 _...As you wish. But I must warn you. I spent 50 years mastering the art of the blades..._

 _I trust in my ability to learn...and my executor class PSI amplifier._

 _In that case, let's begin._

* * *

In a house in Theed, eight marines were taking a break. They were sitting on the ground, half asleep, but their hands clanged on to their Gauss rifles. They are too experienced to sleep tight in such a risky place.

"Sentries report." A marine captain ordered. There were two guards posted outside to observe any incoming danger. They were ordered to report once every five minutes just in case.

"Sentry one all clear." The first marine reported.

"Sentry two..." His voice trailed off, and a strange sound appeared in the radio. "what the...MAYDAY MAYDAY! Ahhhh." The sound of rifle firing was quickly halted, so was the cry for help.

"Target acquired." The first sentry said, and his rifle blasted. "It's a red human being with spikes on his head! Cough..cough..." His voice ended with a clear cracking sound, and the sound of something hitting the floor.

Ten meters away, Dark Maul lowered his right hand as he used the Force choke to kill the first guard. He deactivated the crimson light saber and walked towards the house. A severed marine laid on the ground. Smirking, he walked towards the safe house.

"Red alert!" The marine captain ordered, and all eight marines stood up and readied their rifles and formed a circle. The captain opened up the communication to the commander in charge. Victor.

"Commander." He spoke quickly.

"Captain." Victor, in the other end of the city, frowned. What can possibly go wrong?

"We are under attack. Two brothers are down. I don't have a clear view on the enemy."

"How?" Victor asked surprised. "Hold your ground and stay alert. Reinforcements will be there within a few minutes."

"Yes sir." The captain closed off the communication. That was when he heard the sound of wood cracking. Confused, he looked up, and found a red light cutting its way through the ceiling.

"Open fire!" The man ordered. The marines looked up with their rifles ready, but all they saw was a flash of red...

* * *

Cassidy took a deep breath and focused on making contact with the PSI energy in her body. After a while of meditation, she used her mind to control the PSI energy and forced it into her body, gradually transforming her body into energy form. The process was slow at first, but then Cassidy felt a surge of pure energy going into her body via the PSI amplifier on her back, and she immediately transformed into charge mode.

But before Cassidy could get excited, she saw something enlarging in her eyesight. Before she could do anything, she ran into the Protoss Nexus. The blue plasma shield forced her out of energy mode and halted her progression. Luckily, her own shield prevented her face from getting all bloody.

 _You are a quick learner._

Cassidy frowned, unsatisfied. _Not exactly, I could barely stop myself. If it was a light saber rather than a Nexus, I'd be very dead._

 _With some more practice you can master this ability. You'll be able to charge into the enemy and stop and attack with your weapon just in time._

 _Sorry to interrupt, Executor. But it seems like the Terran are requiring your presence._

 _What's wrong?_

 _It seems like the Terran forces inside Theed have been defeated. The commander is heavily wounded, and most of the marines are dead._

 _What?_

Cassidy's body immediately disappeared from the base.

* * *

 **So, another update. I might be quite busy in the next few days, but I'll see what I can do...**

 **This story currently has 7 followers and 8 alerts. It's having quite the progress...**


	8. Bad News (K)

As Cassidy walked to the commanding center, she noticed half a dozen wounded marines on the way. Their armors were dirty and bloody. Cassidy recognized one of them to be a captain for Victor. Delta. This makes her want to curse. She left 80 marines to Victor. Few have returned.

The commanding center is already filled with commanders. Cassidy walked past some of them and went into the medical chamber.

Victor was lying on a bed. His armor is taken off. He seemed perfectly health physically, but mentally not so much. Cassidy noticed how his eyes didn't move when she entered.

Brian was sitting beside Victor. He looked worried. Cassidy frowned and sat down beside him.

"Victor?" Cassidy asked with a soft voice. "What happened?" Truth to be told, what Cassidy really wants to do is draw her blade and cut this idiot into pieces. She had the perfect plan, and all Victor had to do was wait. When the Jedis and the rightful queen of Naboo returns, their combined forces can take down the Federation army and capture the viceroy. The Vikings and Banshees would be out by then, and can crush the fortress from above. But now everything's changed.

Still, she has to be nice. This makes her sick.

"There was a Sith Lord." Victor said quietly. "Darth Maul. He wielded a double edged light saber and charged into us. There's nothing we could do. Everyone died."

Cassidy turned around, and her nails dug deep into her palm. The sharp pain and the feeling of blood calmed her down, slightly. She's not here to listen to the horrified story of a veteran. She's here for information. Information she needs to formulate a plan.

"What-What actually happened back there?" Cassidy said as nice as she can manage. "Tell me what you know."

"I was hiding in my safe house when one of the captains gave me a distress call. He reported two of his men were attacked by a man wielding a red light saber. I told him to stay put and then assembled all the marine squads.."

"Wait." Cassidy cut him off. "You assembled all the squads!? There's a reason I positioned the units in different groups Victor. It's so that we won't be taken out in a single blow!" She was very loud in the latter part.

"Cas!" Brian warned, and Cassidy took a deep breathe. "Vic, go on."

"My men and I went to the location of the endangered squad. But when we got there, all we found were battle droids, hundreds of them in hiding. We tried to retreat, but the exit route was cut off by destroyers. We were cornered and ambushed."

"Don't you know what scouts are?" Cassidy asked. "News flash. When you march with an army, you send out scouts to make sure where you are going is not swarming with droids!"

"I was short in time." Victor argued. "One more second wasted means a higher chance of the squad in trouble dying. I can't risk that."

"Those were eight marines and forty minerals!" Cassidy stated. "They can be remade within a few minutes."

"Those were eight lives! Eight men who trusted me with their lives!" What Cassidy said angered the man, as he straightened up on the bed.

Cassidy silently cursed, but she's not here to argue. "...Fine. But you had seventy marines. Even ambushed, the marines can tear through the droids easily." Cassidy said impatiently.

"There was a Sith Lord." Victor said as if he's still haunted. "He charged into our rank and slaughtered our men. I-I thought I was going to die!"

"Grrrrrr." Cassidy groaned and smashed the table. The stupidity of her comrade is annoying her so much that she can't keep herself calm anymore. "What are you doing back here, then?" She said cruelly. "You weak, pathetic...Ehh." She paused before turning around and leaving the room. She needs some breathing space.

"Cas!" Brian shouted, but Cassidy was a bit too enraged. If she was any less logical, she might be attacking the fool now. But she isn't, which is why she is turning around and leaving.

"Let her go." Victor stopped Brian. "It's my fault. I suppose. I am the only reason why those men died." Brian signed and sat back down.

* * *

Cassidy walked out of the commanding center and into the forest. There, she sat down below the shadows of a tree and closed her eyes. She had her armor off, and was wearing a red jacket. As she felt the cool breathe on her skin, she went over the current conditions.

There are currently around a hundred normal marines, twenty something elite marines, six Vikings and two Banshees, which are not enough for a single attack on the droid army.

The eighty marines were not just a major part of the Terran army, but their positions were also very crucial. Their existence means that the droids can't move out because if they do, the royal palace might be attacked. They were the eyes and ears for her, and now she has no knowledge of Theed.

Apparently the Federation knows that, because they sent out Darth Maul to deal with the marines. The Sith Lord has some talents, but even he can't quickly distinguish the dozens of soldiers from a city filled with tens of thousands of civilians. This is why he went to a known shelter and pressured the soldiers within, forcing them to ask for backup before executing them. And when the backup arrive, the droid army in hiding will take the reinforcements out.

Victor fell into the well knit trap.

But can she blame him? According to what she saw, Victor was merely a brave teenager who has no experience in war or tactics. The only difference between him and the other teenagers is that he has more courage. But such courage can't bring him victory, and neither can it help him recognize the trap that she, as an experienced hunter, can easily understand.

And he might be the best choice she has for the position of a high ranked general. Brian is kind, which makes him an excellent leader but a terrible commander. Amy is too proud to go along with the others. The others are just useless. As for herself, she is going to be a great commander, but she's prefers to be a fighter rather than a tactician. Victor, who willingly stayed in the face of danger, is her best choice, despite his failure.

Whatever is lost is already lost, and she must make do of what is left. Cassidy silently made a mental note to herself to cheer Victor back up.

That was when she heard the voice of a Viking pilot talking to her via the radio. She remembered the Vikings were assigned to patrol the skies as soon as they were built.

"Commander, a republic transport is spotted coming into our airspace." His voice sounded mechanical through the breathing mask.

"Guide the transport into our base and alert the others." Cassidy ordered as she stood up and returned to the base. Finally, the Jedis are here, and it's time for some retaliation.

* * *

 **Just a short chapter. The next 2K chapter will be way longer and will be updated around next week.**


	9. Tactics (2K)

In the medical caring center, Brian was still sitting beside Victor and talking to him. The latter seemed to be relieved off his stress, to a certain degree anyway.

A man in grey commander armor walked up to the leader. He had his helmet down, covering his face. Brian smiled apologizing to Victor before standing up and walking into another room. The man followed.

"There is a republican transport approaching. Cassidy ordered the ships to be guided into our base." The man reported with a strange accent.

Brian nodded. "At long last. It's time to meet our friend from the republic. I certainly hope they can make things better." He stood up and walked out of the commanding center, the man followed.

* * *

Cassidy watched as three figures in the sky grew larger and larger as they closed the distance. Two Vikings, in their blue plating, were on the sides of a red, republic transport.

As they got close enough, the Vikings bodies twisted, and their wings lowered, revealing double Gatling cannons. Two "legs" extended outwards, allowing the fighter to maintain balance on the ground. In a few seconds of transformation, the Vikings transformed from a powerful anti-air fighter into an anti-ground supporting unit. The two Vikings held their position and scanned the area for any possible threat.

The transport was less impressive. It simply landed on an open field before the Terran metal buildings. Its wings extracted, and its door opened. Two figures walked out. One of them was the Jedi master the Terran made a deal with, Qui-Gon Jinn. He looked like a kind elder, but Cassidy could feel a sense of danger coming off him. He's a dangerous figure.

The other one was a young woman. She had her hair tied into a ponytail behind her, and she looked sharp and intelligent. Cassidy heard footsteps and saw Brian walking up. She nodded to him and backed off, giving a slightly confused look at the commander behind him.

"Commander." Qui-Gon said with a bright smile. "It's nice to see you again."

"I wish I can say it's a pleasure." Brian replied and noticed the woman beside the Jedi. "This is?"

"I am Queen Amidala of Naboo." The woman stepped up. "And in behalf of Naboo, I thank you for the help you and your people are providing us."

"We did what we had to do, your majesty." Brian said quietly, not flattered by the praises. "By invading Naboo, the Federation is threatening our people with their army, and we can not allow that to happen."

Brian started guiding the guests into the commanding center. "Commander Brian." Amidala suddenly asked. "May I ask what origin your people are from? I don't recall having your race on Naboo. Much less an entire army." Cassidy frowned. Is now really the time for this? If the answer is not carefully answered, then there might be a gap in between the cooperation between the two forces. This can be detrimental before a war.

For a second she was worried whether or not Brian can reply appropriately. She chose Brian because of his ability to unite the others, not for his intelligence.

But she seems to be worrying too much, for the commander already has an answer.

"Our people is known as the Terran." He said quietly and calmly, as if he's telling a simple truth. "For decades we have been living in the rural areas, more interested in developing new technologies than doing politics. But with the current droid invasion, we are forced to walk out of our bases and fight in this war."

"Your people will not be mistreated." Amidala assured Brian. "When we defeat the Federation, I will suggest to the Republic Senate of giving you a planet to settle on and a place in the senate. Your contribution will not be wasted, and your people will have a permanent place to settle."

Cassidy was seriously impressed. As young and weak as the Queen might seem, Amidala is a good leader. By saying what she said, she accomplished multiple objectives. First, by granting serious rewards, Amidala made sure the Terran are completely with her in this war, an important factor considering the Terran army makes up the majority of the forces. If she hadn't made the promise, the Terran might abandon their cause if the Federation agrees to let them leave Naboo.

On the other hand, Amidala made sure the Terran would be leaving Naboo after it's all over. Otherwise the situation will be very awkward and insecure if an entire army is just beside the planet's capital city. Third, if the Terran have a place in the Senate, then it's likely they'll be an ally of Naboo.

Of course, Cassidy thought. She might just be thinking too much. Perhaps the queen is merely giving out words of encouragement. Who knows?

"That will be very generous of you." Brian replied. "The entire Terran army will stand by you, your grace."

"Very well." Amidala exclaimed. "Now, we need to make a plan to free my people."

Brian nodded to a camera, and the map of Theed was projected into the air through a hologram. Amidala frowned discreetly when she saw every part of Theed was on the map. The Terran were not as keeping to themselves as they claim they are.

"After my primary encounter and agreement with master Jinn." Brian explained. "We were threatened by the droid army. In order to stop the droids from attacking us, we bought the fight to them." He nodded to Cassidy, signaling her to continue.

Cassidy nodded back and stepped forward, and all the eyes in the room trained on her.

"The advantage of the droid army is in their number, so we made a move to stop that. A group of marine was sent into Theed to sabotage the droids within, and dismantle whenever the majority of the droid army approached. This forced the droid army to stay in the city while doing damage to weaken the droids."

"Did it work?" Kenobi asked curiously. He had been in the Jedi temple most of the time, and hadn't been very familiar with battle tactics. After all, as peacekeepers, the Jedi don't teach their younglings how to fight wars.

"It worked to a certain degree." Cassidy said. "But then a figure wielding a red light saber intervened, and it the end our forces were wiped out." She looked at Qui-Gon, who was deep in thought. She didn't mention how she knows he's a Sith Lord. It will be suspicious if the Terran know something the Jedis don't.

"I have encountered him before on Tatooine." Qui-Gon finally said after a while. "We had a quick dual, and he seemed to be a force user and a well trained fighter. I don't know who he is." He seemed quite concerned.

"Anyways." Cassidy continued. "Currently our units inside Theed have been cleansed. All we have to offer is a small group of ground units and a handful of aircraft. We don't have enough to take down the entire droid army."

"Master Qui-Gon and I came up with a plan on the way here." Amidala said. "The droids are controlled by a single source, a single control ship in space. If we can take that ship out, then all the droids will be disabled."

"So here's the plan. The Terran are going to act as a distraction in somewhere outside Theed. Hopefully you can draw out the droid army. Using the gap in defense, Master Qui-Gon and I will lead a team to strike the royal palace, where Nute Gunrey, the leader of the Trade Federation, is located. On the way, we will take back the hanger, along with dozens of fighters within. These fighters will be piloted by our pilots into an attack on the droid control ship. As long as one of the squads succeed, we win this fight." She seemed confident, but Cassidy is not the type of person that's easily convinced, especially when her life is on the line.

"What if the droid army was not lured out? What if the fighters were not enough to take down the control ship? What if you failed to capture Gunrey? Your plan relies on luck." She suggested. This is not her being a bitch. She simply doesn't trust luck.

But the others don't quite agree.

"What do you suggest, commander..." Amidala asked, slightly challenging.

"You can call me Cas." Cassidy replied. "I am suggesting we continue my unfinished plan. We use the lack of intelligence of the droid army and trap them in the complicated streets of Theed. The droids are not known for their ability in skirmishes. Their advantages lay in their numbers, which is most useful in a positional warfare, and we don't need to fight them into their area. All we have to do is take our time and gradually weaken the opponents until we can certainly wipe them out. Then we strike." She concluded.

In terms of pure tactical, that's a good plan.

But wars are often extensions of politics, and politics can include a lot of things.

"How long will it take for your plan to work, commander Cas?" Amidala argued angrily. "During that entire time, my people will be living in fear under the oppressive Federation. Not only so, you are planning to turn Theed into a battlefield. How many civilians will die in the crossfire?"

"A few civilians are a small price to pay to ensure the final success." Cassidy said coldly. She was never one to value human lives, especially those she doesn't even know.

An awkward silence soon followed. Brian frowned at the girl, deep in thought. The Jedis seemed slightly insulted. Qui-Gon was fine, but Kenobi had a look of distaste on his face. Amidala turned red from anger. She seemed to want to say something, but managed to stop herself. The man beside Brian put his hand closer to his hand pistol.

"We are not sacrificing innocent people to make sure we win the war." Brian finally said after a few seconds. "We are going with the original plan. However, I do want to make a few adjustments to make sure we win." He stated. Cassidy looked away. It's not time to break away from the Terran. She's not strong enough.

"Our Vikings, those fighters that escorted the transport, will be assisting your pilots on the attack on the droid control ship. We also have two bombers, which can be helpful in creating the distraction. I will lead the marines to engage the droid army and hold them as long as we can." He concluded.

Amidala nodded. "Then that's done. Let's all get ready. We will be starting the attack tomorrow ten AM." She gave a nod at Brian, and one last glare at Cassidy before turning around and leaving.

"Saizo, escort our guests to a supply depot to rest." Brian ordered, and most of the people in the commanding center walked out. After they left, Cassidy and Brian had a long time of silence.

"You shouldn't have said that." Brian said quietly. "We don't sacrifice the innocent to achieve our goal."

Cassidy smirked. She doesn't care about the civilians. She really doesn't. But what she needs to do is to convince the man standing before her. Because she is, at least for now, too weak. And she needs to parasite off a stronger source, which means she needs to come to an agreement with him _and_ ensure that they win. She took a few seconds to organize her words before speaking.

"If we fail this battle." Cassidy said slowly. "Then we lose every chance we had to stop the darkness in the future. Everything in the movie, the rise of the empire, order 66, the Death Star. Everything will happen in this universe. Hundreds of millions will die and planets will be blasted into pieces. Only a fool will risk all this for a few hundred civilians."

Bran didn't say anything. He circled around the commanding center, as if deep in thought. After a few seconds, he made a decision and began.

"If we use whatever means necessary..." Brian said. "If we be as ruthless, we'd win. But so what? We'd be no different from the empire. Our success will just be a failure because we are no longer ourselves. We will be the darkness we've sworn to stand against!" He was practically yelling.

"You are suggesting we be noble and win. That's not possible." Cassidy stated. "The Jedis tried to do that, and they perished."

"We are stronger then the Jedi. We have an army, which the Jedi never truly had. As long as we work together, we can win this war."

"But..."

"Enough Cas." Brian interrupted. "I have made my decision."

Cassidy was speechless for a while. Her mind ran quicker than ever.

"As you wish. You are the chief commander." She said before turning around and leaving. From this second, she knows her separation with the others is almost certain. The only question is how much she can gain before they break off.

Ten seconds after Cassidy, the man in armor walked in. He stood in front of Brian.

"The others are on our side. I have set an override signal in every Terran unit." He said. "The trap is knit."

"Well then." Brian said confidently. "Let's see which way our friend decides to go down. If she makes the right choice, then we can continue like this. But if she turns to the dark side, then she will die."

"So, you see Cas, I am very different from the Jedi."

"I am always prepared for the worst."

* * *

Cassidy walked out of the commanding center. The captain of her security squad, an elite marine who Cassidy simply "captain", walked up.

"Tell the other commanders to assemble here. We need to formulate a detailed plan." Cassidy ordered.

"Yes madam."

Cassidy closed her eyes and started thinking about all the factors that might change the course of war.

A few minutes later, Cassidy felt multiple figures walking up. She opened her eyes and saw most of the commanders are here. Victor was among them.

"What's the plan, genius?" Amy asked. Even though there's no actual authorities, it is an unspoken rule that Cassidy is the brain of the team. Despite what people think about the girl, her tactics is flawless, for now.

"Our leader have decided on the general plan, and I have no intention of arguing with him." Cassidy explained. "Our army will be separated into three groups. One will be the main forces, composed of all the marines. They will engage the droid army in the open. Victor, can you lead the group?" She looked up, questioning.

Victor seemed surprised. "You still trust me?" He asked. "Even after my failure?"

"What happened before was due to your lack of experience." Cassidy said quietly. "And I intend to change that."

"Thanks." Victor said. It really means a lot to him.

Cassidy didn't respond. "The second group will be the Vikings squadron, composed of six Vikings. They will be assaulting the droid command ship, along with the Naboo pilots." She paused. "I am not planning on assigning any commanders because it's basically a suicide mission. As for the third group..."

"I am going to lead the second squad." Amy suddenly interrupted, and everyone looked at her and frowned.

"It's very risky. You are not trained as a Viking pilot." Cassidy said, surprised. She looked into the other girl's eyes and saw nothing but excitement. "This is not a game."

"I spent most of the time in a Viking cockpit than in a supply depot." Amy argued. "I am an expert at air combat. I will be fine."

"If that's what you want." Cassidy said. True. This girl has some potential, but she doesn't care if she wants to commit suicide. It's her own choice. "The third group will be going along with the queen and capture Nute Gunrey. A group of elite marines and two banshees will be in that group. I will be leading that group. The other commanders can go with the first squad. Any questions?"

"Yes." A voice came from aside, and Cassidy saw Brian and Saizo walking up. "What about me?"

Cassidy frowned. "You are our leader. You should be staying safely in the base."

Brian shook his head. "I will not stay behind while my friends fight and die. Give me a position, Cas."

Cassidy paused for a while. "You can stay in the commanding center and command the missions of all the squads. If something goes wrong, you and your guards can do something to help." Brian looked as if he wanted to say something, but Cassidy cut him off.

"It's a very important job, Brian. You will be our backup." Brian nodded his head.

"Get ready." Cassidy finally concluded. "We march tomorrow."

* * *

 **Just for a clarification in response of a review:**

 **Terran soldiers are all clones. The genetic information of certain soldiers, along with the technology information to construct every single piece of mech in the terran army, have been stored in the commanding center before the base was brought to earth. This is why the commanders can build an army extremely quickly as long as there is enough resource.**

 **As for the origin of the bases:  
** **Before the mysterious destruction of the Starcraft universe, the Terran realized the inevitable. In order to make sure their race survives, the best Terran scientists came together and built a dimensional jumping device, which was inserted into a commanding center. This device allowed the CC to escape the destruction world and reach earth, and then bringing the commanders to the universe of Star Wars. The modified commanding center carries the genetic information of every Terran in the universe in hope that they can be revived one day.**

 **The matter with Protoss was similar. However, they failed to think of the plan at first. Instead, Artanis utilized the power of hundreds of oracles and glanced into the future, and saw the only way to ensure the survival of the Protoss race. This is how Cassidy received her base.**

 **As for why the soldiers are loyal, that is another matter and will be very important in the distant future.**

* * *

 **The next chapter will be the formal battle. Just a question. Does anyone want Qui-Gon to survive?**


	10. Assault on Theed (2K)

In the royal palace, Gunrey frowned at the commander droid before him.

"The rebels are gathering outside the city you say?" Gunrey asked for a confirmation, almost expected the news to be a mistake. Why would the rebels gather in plain sight after Darth Maul wiped out most of their men?

The commander droid nodded and confirmed the news. Gunrey turned to the red figure who's meditating beside him, Darth Maul.

"Don't look at me." Darth Maul said without even opening his eyes. "Those rebels are weak and stupid. The only thing they can do is hit and run. In plain sight, even your droid army can crush them. I have other enemies."

Gunrey was clearly angered. But there's nothing he can do. The Sith Lord answers to his master and his master only. The viceroy had absolutely no control over him. He turned to the commander droid. "Activate the droid army." He said. "Send them out to fight the rebels."

He is not worrying about his only safety. After all, the only group of resistance is the rebels, and they are being hunted. Who can have the strength to attack the palace, break through all the security droids, take down the Sith Lord, and stop him before he can escape?

Perhaps a combination of two Jedi, one Queen, one executor, three commanders, ten elite marines, and two Banshees?

* * *

In a building outside the royal palace, the special Strike team was waiting. Multiple droid transports were marching across the streets below. Every one of them contained dozens of battle droids. Cassidy took a slight peek out of the window.

"Once they engage our marines, we strike." Cassidy said to the Jedis and the Queen. She wore a commander suit. Eight elite marines were beside her. Their right hand holding their Gauss rifle and their left hand carrying a huge combat shield. Several members of the queen's royal guard were also present. "Before that, we have to wait patiently." She sat down and closed her eyes. The elite marines stood around her, alert.

Kenobi looked at Qui-Gon, who simply shrugged and then sat down and closed his eyes, meditating. Kenobi signed and sat down as well.

A commander stood beside Cassidy. She had her helmet painted purple. She's one of the commanders that didn't receive a position and had to choose a part to participate in. She chose the strike team, and she chose it for one reason.

"What's your name?" She asked as she knelt down beside a boy. Of course, she knows who he is. He's the one that stayed throughout most of the Star Wars series. Anakin Skywalker, and the future Darth Vader. But he's not all evil yet. And if she can successfully influence him, then hopefully he will never be turned by Palpatine, and he will never be evil.

"I am Anakin. Anakin Skywalker." The boy said. "You are?" His voice sounded cute and positive. There's no way to relate him to the monster that slaughtered countless.

"You can call me Violet." Violet replied. "It's a code name I chose." She paused for a while. "When the fighting starts, be careful."

"...Thanks?!" Anakin replied hesitantly.

Cassidy grinned as the two talked quietly. At first, she was debating whether or not to allow Skywalker to join them on this dangerous mission. She's confident she doesn't need to rely on a boy to defeat the enemies. But then she gave in. One advantage she has is the knowledge of the future, which will disappear once everything strays from the original plot.

She has to play along with the story line, for now.

* * *

On a hilltop fifty miles away from Theed, an army of marines were waiting. Several SCVs were constructing bunkers to provide cover for the marines.

In the Starcraft universe, the bunkers are completely sealed from top to bottom to protect the marines from being overran by units such as zerglings and zeolets. However, the bunkers here are much simpler, consisting of just enough defense to protect the marines from forward blaster fires and allow them to shoot out through openings. There are no ceiling and no back or side protection. After all, the marines are here to stall the enemies, not fight to death. There's no need to spend that much minerals on defense if they can be turned to units.

The only purpose of the bunkers is to make sure the marines survive as long as possible and fire as many rounds as possible.

"Sir, the droid army is approaching us. ETA five minutes." A marine walked up and reported.

"All units, enter the bunkers. SCVs be prepared to repair." Victor ordered. He wore a commander suit and had a modified rifle in his hand. His heart is longing for the battle, because only a victory can truly wash away the shame his previous failure brought him. Plus, he wants to show Cassidy she was right in trusting him.

The marines nodded and moved behind the coverage of the bunkers. They fit their rifles through the holes and waited for the enemies.

In the almost emptied base, Six landed Vikings were waiting for the signal to attack.

Just outside Theed, two Banshees hid in the forest, awaiting orders.

Six minutes later, the droid transports reached the battlefield. They stopped just outside the range of the marines and started unloading. Tightly packed battle droids were taken out of the vehicles and put on the ground, where they were then activated. The droids straightened their heads, and they reached for their blasters.

The enormous rectangle made up of battle droids seemed threatening, even from a distance away.

"Get ready. Inform Cassidy. It's time to strike." Victor ordered as he looked at the droids.

* * *

"Let's go!" Cassidy suddenly opened her eyes and stood up. The other stood up, and an elite marine opened the door and walked out. The Jedis and the guards soon followed. As Amidala was walking out, she heard Cassidy talking to her.

"When the fighting starts, stay behind." Cassidy whispered. "The last thing we need is for you to get hurt."

Amidala gave a surprising look at Cassidy, slightly confused about the word of comfort to come from someone like her, but the latter ignored it. It's not like she cares about the queen. It's just the Terran might lose an important ally if Amidala dies.

The streets were oddly quiet. It's mostly because the recent battles scared most of the citizens from leaving their home. Those who dared leaving immediately hid as they saw the squad moving. The team reached the front plaza of the palace without much accident. But the plaza was guarded by dozens of droids and two tanks. A small obstacle.

"How do you suppose we get pass them?" Amidala asked as she took out a blaster, slightly excited.

Cassidy glanced at her before speaking into the com.

"Banshee, go!"

"Rolling thunder!" Two Banshees appeared from above and unleashed multiple volleys at the droids below.

One of the tanks suffered a direct hit from the banshee's backlash rockets. The plasteel lines warhead easily burned through the surface of the tank and created a loud explosion that sent half of the vehicle into the sky. The other missile wasn't so lucky as it merely landed on the plaza and destroyed five battle droids.

"Blast them!" The battle droid opened fire at the Banshees, but the quick aircraft easily dodged most of the blasters and endured the rest.

"Move!" Cassidy ordered, and the elite marines jumped out and fired at the droids, whose attentions were on the Banshees. As the Gauss rifles blasted through the metal machines, most of the droids fell easily. Those who survived found their targets defended by a huge, metal shield that covered their entire body.

"Boom!" The tank that survived the Banshee fired at the marines, and the tremendous strength immediately vaporized two marines and one royal guard. The combat shield did nothing against the explosive shell. However, the tank didn't have another chance to make a difference as the two Banshees returned and fired again. This time, all the rounds hit, and the tank, along with its crew members, blew into a pile of burning debris.

"Let's go." Cassidy ordered as she walked out of the safety of cover. She didn't participate in the previous battle because she has no intention of pointlessly revealing her capabilities. "We must act before the droid realize what happened. Move!" As the team rushed into the palace, Cassidy turned to the Banshees.

"Lift into the air and report any incoming."

"Yes ma'am."

Cassidy turned and walked into the royal palace. She just hopes the marines can hold on longer.

* * *

"Fire!" A commander droid mounted on a tank ordered as it gripped its left hand tightly. The tanks opened fire on the marines on top of the hill.

However, this is where Cassidy's planning came into effect. Of all the places, including forests, plain fields, and inside the city, Cassidy chose the positioning on top of a hill for a reason.

The thing about the hill is, due to the distance issue, the droid army can only engage from a certain side and have to attack upwards. If they tried to maneuver around, they would have to go through forests, which droid transports weren't really good at. This means the heavy tanks can only have a certain angle of firing range. The blasts can only hit certain places, and those places are protected heavily by bunkers.

The blasts mostly hit the field between the two armies. The few ones that were close were blocked by the thick, steel walls of the bunkers. The marines, protected by the bunkers, their own combat shields, and their CMC armor, were completely safe.

"Engage!" The droid commander said as it calculated the effect of the tank fires, which was close to none. As the order passed down, the droid formation started to march forward, their blasters all firing at once, barely missing their comrades at the front.

"Open fire!" Victor ordered as he poked his rifle out of the cover and fired. The other marines obeyed as they did a similar thing.

A mixture of the sound of blasters firing and rifles shooting covered the battlefield. The rapid firing of the Gauss rifles cut down droids one by one. The fragile machines didn't stand a single chance.

But the droids outnumber the marines almost 30:1. The droids, though falling by droves, mindlessly continued their attack. Red blasts continuously smashed onto the steel walls, slightly weakening with each shot. Occasionally, a blast found its way through the openings where the marines were shooting out.

"Ahhh." A marine screamed as a red bolt penetrated a crack and burned through his armor. But the scream quickly disappeared as he stopped breathing.

"Press on!" Victor ordered, slightly pained as he saw more and more marines falling. He knew this is a necessary sacrifice, but that doesn't mean he welcomes it.

"Hold the line!" A marine captain shouted as he fired and took down two more droids.

"Cas, you better be quick." Victor whispered as he continued firing at the droids. A marine groaned and fell down beside Victor. His helmet melted by a blast, and his combat shield fell on the ground. A marine beside him glanced at him, and resumed to firing after realizing there's no way to save the fallen.

* * *

"Commander, the marine corp is suffering heavy losses." Inside the commanding center, the adjacent reported with its cold, female voice.

"Some losses are expected." Brian replied, doing his best to be a cold blooded, calculating commander. "Where is the assaulting squad?"

"According to the cross examination of the tracker placed on the elite marines and the map of the royal palace of Theed, the strike team is approaching the hanger that contains the fighters of the Naboo royal space fighter corp. Once the reclaim the hanger, the pilots can mount their fighters and launch the space assault."

"Get me Amy."

"Contacting commander Amy now."

"This is Viking one to command." Amy's voice sounded strange through the oxygen mask, but Brian has no time for that.

"Get your fighters ready." The leader ordered. "I want the fighters in the air with a single command."

"Vikings can transform into fighter mode in three seconds, so there's no need to...I mean YES SIR!"

"Good." Brian signed and closed the comm.

"Are you worried that Cas might fail?" Behind Brian, a commander asked in a strange accent.

"Not quite." Brian replied as he took a sip at a cup of water. "As...flawed Cassidy's personality might be, her skills in tactics is undeniable. I believe she can lead us to victory. But at what cost?"

"What can I do?" Saizo asked eagerly. There's no way for him to stay back while his friends fight and die.

"Take half the security forces and go help the marine corp." Brian ordered. "But don't get into the bunkers. Instead, get around the droid army and hit them from the back. I doubt the stupid metal can respond efficiently. And if they do, draw the droids into the forest and take away some pressure from Victor."

Saizo nodded and left the commanding center.

* * *

"Hey, who are you?" A battle droid asked with surprise as it spotted the strike team walking down the hallway. An elite marine fired a round into its chest plating and destroyed it.

"That's the hanger." The captain of Amidala's royal guard pointed to a gate.

"Get ready." Cassidy ordered. "Three, two, one, go!"

Following the order, most of the combat units, guard, marines, and fighter pilots, charged up with their weapons hot. The Jedis ignited their light sabers and fought at the front, deflecting blasters and protecting the soldiers at the back.

Padme Amidala took out a blaster and attempted to charge up. Cassidy almost choked by surprise, and was barely enough to grab her by the waist and stop her brave yet unwise action.

"What?!" Amidala asked, slightly insulted. They can hear the sound of blasters and Gauss rifles in the hanger, as long as sound of bodies hitting the ground.

"You are a Queen, your majesty! You are not a foot soldier! So don't act like one!" Cassidy barked. Even she failed to expect the queen's action. "All it takes is one bolt. One bolt of plasma, and we lose everything. So please, for the sake of everyone, stay safe!"

"Those are my people up there!" Padme argued. "I will not stay behind while they die for me!"

"That's not your choice." Cassidy replied coldly. That's when she heard a marine reporting to her.

"It's all clear here, ma'am."

"Let's go." Cassidy said as she released Padme. The latter gave an angry glare at the armored woman, but Cassidy ignored it.

The hanger was quite a battlefield. Destroyed droids laid on the ground, completely silent. Multiple bodies, marines and guards alike, laid on the ground. All of the suffered a blast on a vital organ, most of the were shot in the chest. There were no blood as the high temperature of the plasma bolt burned and sealed the veins. Some wounded were treated aside. Pilots were scrambling to enter the fighters and taking off.

Cassidy watched as Padme rushed to check out the wounded. "Command, this is Cas. The Naboo fighters are taking off. Tell the Vikings to join them. We are heading for the viceroy."

"Copy that, good luck." Brian replied through the radio.

"Luck has nothing to do with anything." Cassidy closed the comm and whispered before turning to the marines. "Get ready. We march to..." She paused as the hanger door smashed open, revealing a red figure. He had red spikes on his head, and he wore a black robe. His eyes were yellow. He held a silver stick horizontally lined up to the ground, and two red beams extended out of both ends.

"We will handle this." Qui-Gon said as he and his padawan walked up and reached for their own light sabers. The Jedi and the Sith have been enemies forever, and it's their duty to defeat this Sith and find out where he came from.

But Cassidy has no intention of leaving the Jedi and the Sith for a noble fight. She's not a warrior. This is precisely why she waved her hand, and the marines walked up and trained their rifles on the Sith.

Darth Maul's eyes widened in frustration and a scent of fear. He saw and knew what the marine rifles can do from the previous encounter. The odd weapons can fire with astonishing speed, which, combined with the solid projectiles instead of plasma bolts, makes it almost impossible for the Sith Lord to deflect. He might be able to jump on the marines with the element of surprise, but in a fair fight, he'll be pinned down before he can connect with the marines.

Of course, he has a lot of tricks up his sleeve, but with two Jedis beside, his chance is slim.

"This is a Jedi matter, commander. The Terran has no authority here." Qui-Gon argued. For centuries, fighting the Sith were the Jedi's duty. "Go get the viceroy. Time is not on our side."

"If that's what you want, master Jedi." Cassidy replied coldly. As long as the Sith doesn't pose a threat to her mission, she doesn't care what he does. She and the marines turned around and walked out of another exit. The Jedi and the Sith staring at each other the whole time before jumping and slashing at each other.

* * *

In the space above the royal palace, six Viking fighters were waiting. One of them was painted purple. It's Amy's.

"Careful!" She barked as a red blast came out of a ground to air static defense and barely missed her fighter. "Hey Bronze, how about we have some warm up before the real fight? Huh?"

"Commander, it is unwise to engage the static defenses. Forces might be lost in exchange for little gain..." A Viking captain replied.

"What are you talking about? We are clearing a way for our allies." Amy grinned. "Stay here!" She said as she charged down towards the mounted static defense.

"What the?" Bronze groaned as his commander just charged into danger. But he can't do anything, no matter how much he wanted. Orders are orders.

As the first one to approach, Amy successfully attracted all the tower's attention. The computer programmed cannon kept on firing at the Vikings as fast as it can manage. But Amy's fighter was way too agile to be taken down so easily. The plane dodged the blasts with a few rotations as it engaged the tower.

As the tower grew closer and closer, Amy's hand started to sweat. Suddenly, a scent purple flashed in her eyes, and in a split second she pulled up the fighter. The fighter flew over the tower, barely crashing into the defense.

But just before the Vikings escaped, Amy pressed a red button in the control panels.

Two Lanzer Torpedoes were released from the fighter, and after half a second of travelling in the air, crashed into the tower. With a loud boom, Amy's purple fighter emerged from the dust, safe and sound. Bronze took a breathe of relief. That's when he saw a dozen yellow fighters coming out of the hanger.

"This is commander Amy of the Terran Air Force. We are engaging the droid command ship in three minutes. Good luck." Amy said as the Vikings and the fighters teamed up and flew into outer space. There's a battle waiting.


	11. Problems and Solutions (2K)

"Ahhh!" Another marine fell with a burn in the headset of his armor. Victor glanced at him before turning back. This is the fifteenth marine that fell. His army can't withstand much longer.

The droids continued approaching. Their number have dwindled to less than half of the original count, but they have managed to close in the distance. Now they are practically above the marines, and the bunkers and shields are starting to get useless as the droids are attacking from more than one direction.

"Exit bunker and charge!" Victor ordered loudly. The bunkers, in order to protect the marines from the tanks, are designed to be relatively low. If the droid get above the bunkers, they will be able to easily shoot down the marines from above. His only hope is to engage the droids in a close combat and hope for the best.

"Take them out!" A marine barked as he and his comrades stood up and charged, their shields blocking most of the blasts and their rifles firing. Since the enemies are so close, taking aim is no longer necessary. All the marines had to do was position the rifles toward the front and pull the trigger, and the droids just fell.

Victor charged up and destroyed three droids with his rifle. A droid got too close to him, and he subconsciously lifted his combat shield and smashed the droid in the head. The fragile head part of the droid was instantly removed, and the headless battle droid fell down, electric sparks blazing around the neck.

But that was when Victor saw something red flying towards him. Thinking it's just a random blast, he positioned his combat shield before the blast instead of dodging it.

He immediately knew what a big mistake he made. The blast, instead of disappearing like the dozens of other blasts Victor deflected, exploded. The explosion knocked Victor off his feet and sent him lying face down on the ground. His shield and rifle was nowhere to be seen.

The commander turned around and struggled to stand up, only to see the sight of a destroyer through his mask...

* * *

"Dadadada." A marine's rifle sang and took down two red headed security droids two were poking there head out off the cover of the wall. But two more identical droids poked out and fired at the marine. The marine groaned and used his shield to block the blasts, his body shaking a bit from the impact.

"We can't break through, commander!" Behind a wall, the marine captain reported to Cassidy. "The droids are reinforcing here, and it is too narrow to use our number advantage! What is your command?"

Cassidy silently cursed her clumsiness. This is not a part of their plan. They never should've been discovered, at least not this early. But when one of the marines walked past a corner and crashed into a droid patrol, they lost all discreetness as the droids fired without any hesitation. No one died, but it's worse than losing some marines. They lost their element of surprise.

As the droid patrol were turned to wasted scrap, Cassidy ordered the team to speed up. But, even so, they were still quite far away from their target when the droids stopped them with the help of the walls and corners.

"We need to do something." Cassidy saw a commander with her helmet painted purple moving up to her. Cassidy can't help but notice she was protecting Anakn Skywalker. "The longer we stay here, the less chance we have!"

"If we don't capture Gunrey, our entire plan will be depending on the flying corp." Amidala warned.

"I have a plan." Cassidy stated. "Captain, do this..." The captain nodded and turned to his men.

As the droids mechanically fired, they suddenly saw a wall of steel forming at the other end of the hallway. Half a dozen elite marines raised their shields and formed a shield wall and advanced toward the droid firing squad. The blasts only bounced off the combat shields.

Normally, logic soldiers will back off and regroup, doing everything they can to slow the attackers down. But the droids are not normal, and so they held their ground, and were crushed once the marines closed the distance. Their fragile limbs, though metal, failed to withstand the steel fists of the marines.

"All clear commander." A marine reported as he kicked a blasted droid.

"Advance!" Cassidy ordered as the group continued to run down the hallway. As they went past another turn, they were met with a wall of droids.

"Damn it!" Violet cursed as she saw a dozen battle droids and three destroyers. The marines immediately lined up their shields and covered most of the group, but everyone know the shields can't protect them forever. Sooner or later a blast or two will get through, and that will be the end.

* * *

Amy took a deep breathe as she saw a huge ship a distance away. It's body was paint black, and countless cannons were positioned around the surface. Once they fire, the blasts will be forming a web of death. It's her target. The droid command ship.

"That doesn't look too tough." Amy commented and did her best to sound positive and confident. But then her pupil suddenly turned purple for a second, and she immediately barked. "Droid fighters incoming!"

"What, where?" The captain of the Naboo ships asked in confusion. However, Amy didn't respond, and after a few seconds he saw dozens of small black dots closing in. Vulture droids. The captain frowned in confusion. How did the Terran see the fighters so far away?

"Captain, take down the vultures first before attacking the command ship so we don't have to be hit by both the fighters and the cannons on the ship." Amy ordered. Without waiting for a response, her fighter made a swift flip and accelerated. Five other Vikings followed her lead.

The captain bit his lips, feeling slightly disrespected. But they are in a dire situation, and arguing will harm both sides. "Attack the droids." He said, and the yellow fighters advanced.

As both sides turned on their full power, they finally collided after a few minutes.

Amy's fighter made a swift turn and dodged a string of blasts before firing a pair of torpedoes at the vulture. The vulture's CPU noticed the incoming, but even the mechanical body couldn't manage to dodge the torpedo in such a close distance. After half a second, the torpedoes connected, and a huge puff of fire erupted and consumed the droid.

"First kill." Amy smiled. She turned back and found all the Vikings intact. One of them was grazed by the blasts, but the Viking armor, strong enough to withstand the fire of a Gauss rifle for days, managed to hold on. Five more droid debris were behind the Vikings.

But what made the vulture droids the primary fighter of the Trade Federation was not there ability in one to one combat. Rather, it's the number and the willingness to sacrifice that made the droids popular.

Noticing what can be described as a slaughter, the remained two dozen droids continued to fly towards the Vikings while firing their blasts in an attempt to destroy the Terran ships. Their programs didn't include fear, which made the droids filled with bravery...as they rushed to their demise...

"Take these clankers down, boys!" Amy shouted as she let loose another two torpedoes at a vulture. The vulture span and span, doing everything it can pull off to avoid its fate. But the torpedoes were armed with advance tracking system. Once they lock on target, only a tactical jump can dodge them. The vulture droid exploded.

"Second kill."

The Vikings started to tackle the vultures. Red blasts and Blue torpedoes filled the battlefield. The reinforcement of the Naboo pilots also contributed. The Royal flying corp, designed to chase down pirates and smugglers, proved their worth in a real space battle as they shot down more and more vultures while suffering small losses.

"Oh s**t!" A Viking pilot suddenly screamed as a burning vulture droid fell towards his fighter. He tried to pull up, but it was too late. With a boom, the two fighters exploded into flames.

Amy's eyes widened as she heard the dying curse of one of her men. A wave of anger covered her heart and clouded her mind, and for a second her eyes turned completely purple. A wave of invisible energy came out of the girl, and for a moment all the vulture droids exploded.

"What the...what just happened?" Bronze asked as he saw what might be considered a miracle.

At the same time, Brian, who was in the commanding center, also saw that. "What just happened?" He asked the adjacent.

"Calculating..." The adjacent replied, and kept silent for a long time. "I have lost control over the fighters for two seconds. It seems like the shock wave that took out the droids temporarily disconnected me from the squadron."

"..." Brian frowned. It seems like there are things that he failed to account for, but that's not his primary concern. He frowned as he saw the droids overrunning the marines in the plain field.

Back in space, Amy took a deep breathe and realized how her anger just placed her in a difficult situation. But a voice in her head comforted her. After a few seconds of closing her eyes, Amy finally spoke to the confusion of her team. "Someone helped us." She said slowly. "I don't know who, but we need to stick to the plan. Continue the mission." The fighters obeyed and advanced toward the control ship.

* * *

In the plain field, the destroyer before Victor aimed its twin cannon at the commander. Victor struggled to look for anything that he can use to save himself, and found nothing. Both his rifle and his shield were knocked out. He's practically dead. Sweat fell down and covered his eyes. The air conditioning of his armor couldn't stop the burning anxiety within him.

Just as the destroyer is about to fire, something came from beside and hit the droid's shield. Victor turned and found an elite marine. A member of his elite guard.

He saved him.

However, the ammo of the rifle failed to break through the destroyer's shield. Instead, it merely caused a ripple that quickly disappeared. The destroyer fired on the marine, who jumped aside and dodged the hit. The destroyer left Victor moved towards the moving marine, firing in the process.

"Sir, we don't have enough guns to take down these destroyers. We need marauders to break their shields." Another elite marine walked up and reported. A distance away, a group of marines were attacking the destroyer with their rifles, but failed to penetrate the shield.

"We are losing the fight, commander." Another marine ran up and reported. "The droids are overrunning us. We don't have the number to..." A red blast hit the marine in the helmet and killed him. The first elite marine turned around and took down two battle droids.'

Victor scanned the surrounding and found the marines overran. The battle droids are much more than the marines, despite the fact that both sides are quickly dwindling. He knows staying can only mean more death and little result.

"Command, we need to pull back!" Victor said into the radio as he took up the rifle of the head shot marine and blasted at the droids. "I have lot most of my men."

Back in the commanding center, Brian frowned. "Saizo is leading the reinforcements to you. Leave the battlefield with your protection squadron and join him. You two will stall the droid army." He suddenly said quietly and coldly. "But leave the marine corp to stand their ground and stall the droids for as long as they can. I will check on Cas."

Victor took down another droid. A marine fell beside him. "What?" He asked loudly. "I am not leaving my men to die!"

"The marines are 50 minerals each!" Brian barked. "They can die and be remade, but you can't! Pull back now!" He ordered almost angrily.

"No." Victor stated. Cas trusted him, even after his initial failure. He's not going to return as a coward and a loser. He will either return as a victor or die as a martyr. "Tell Cas to be quick." He said as he closed the comm to the commanding center. "All units, hold your ground!"

"Victor! Victor!" Brian shouted.

"Sir, it appears to commander Victor have disconnected from the communication."

"Damn it!" Brian smashed the table, creating a loud noise. "Get me Cas and Saizo!"

* * *

"Cas, Cas, what is your progress?" Cassidy bit her lips as she heard Brian calling for her in the comm. But she's quite occupied. After all, she is surrounded by dozens of droids with their blasters trained on her. "Cas, report!"

"Drop your weapons, they win this round." Amidala said as she dropped her blaster. She has a plan.

But Cassidy doesn't want to surrender. Even though she knew the Queen's plan, she is still disgusted by the idea of giving up.

 _Is there any way to take down these droids without giving out my secret?_

 _Executor, your PSI count strong enough to use feedback on the droids and burn down their circuits, but you never learned the skill._

 _Well, in that case..._

"Banshees, are you there?" Cassidy whispered into the comm that's inserted into her armor. The droids couldn't notice her action because of the helmet that covered her face.

"What are you thinking? Order the marines to surrender for now. I have a plan." Amidala whispered as she noticed Cassidy's movement. But Cas is too proud to surrender.

"Yes ma'am." The female pilot of one of the Banshees reported.

"Locate my position and fire two backlash rockets at half a meter above my direction."

"But ma'am..."

"That's an order!"

"...Yes ma'am."

"Are you crazy?" Amidala said as quiet as she could. "We will be blown up. I am not dying because of your ego!"

"Cover the window with your shields. Protect Amidala and all the commanders at all cost as soon as I order so." Cassidy ordered cruelly. She is planning on sacrificing most of her men to protect her pride.

"Drop your weapons." A commander droid walked up. The battle droids separated and formed a small pathway. "You are trapped with no escape."

"Really?" Cassidy smiled wickedly. "Look at me, because I am getting out of this trap in three seconds. Two. One. Now!"

What happened next was dramatic. The marines did what they were told, even if it meant sacrificing themselves. They positioned themselves in between the rest of the team and the window, forming a wall of steel and flesh. Four backlash missiles broke the window and went over Cassidy's head, exploding in the hallway. The explosion consumed droids and marines alike.

Immediately after the explosion, Cassidy went outside the cover and glanced at the situation. Most of the battle droids were dead, due to their fragile body. One of the destroyers disappeared. The other one was severely damaged. It's shield disappeared.

The price was also great. Five of the remaining elite marines were dead. Only three remained, including the captain. Two of the royal guards were also dead. Cassidy felt a burning sensation on her shoulder and found a small piece of metal, presumably powered by the impact of the rockets.

Cassidy fired at the destroyer and shattered it. That's when she sensed an angry female walking to her.

"What were you thinking back there, I had a plan!" Amidala raged. Her suit was dirty, and a drop of blood was on her face. "I was going to..."

"I don't care what plan you had, your majesty..." Cassidy replied as she pulled the metal piece out. Her voice steady. "But I will die before surrendering to my enemies." Because that will mean she is flawed, and she can't except that. "Now, I believe our objective is not far away from us. So do you want to waste time condemning me or do you want to accomplish what you came for?"

"You..." Amidala struggled to suppress her anger. "I will tell your leader about this."

"Go ahead." Cassidy smiled as she walked away from the Queen.

"I heard an explosion, what happened back there?" Brian asked. He had a report on the situation from the units, and was quite surprised by the girl's action. But he didn't want to give Cas a clue that he might have more authority on the Terran units that she does.

"I broke through a difficult situation." Cassidy replied. "We are advancing to Gunrey now. How are the other two teams doing?"

"Not good." Brian stated. "The marines are severely weakened, and Victor refused to fall back. Amy has broken through the defensive fighter droids in the sky, and is yet about to attack the command ship."

"I am getting very close to Gunrey." Cassidy said as she waved at the marines, motioning them to follow her. "Capturing him will hopefully put an end to this."

"Be quick..." Brian said as he turned off the comm. _If Victor is dead, then you will join him. You are the reason why he is too scared to fail, even if it's not his fault._

* * *

In space, Five Vikings charged head on towards the enormous object before them. Two dozen yellow fighters followed. However, due to the stalling the vultures did, the ship was prepared. Tremendous number of cannons and ant-fighter guns were activated. The targeting programs locked on to the targets, and the guns fired.

Immediately, the airspace around the control ship was filled with countless light beams targeting the fighters.

"Uhh." Amy groaned as her fighter suddenly accelerated and dodged all the blasts heading towards her.

The Vikings were not as gifted as she is, but they have their own methods to bypass the limits of human body. After all, the Vikings were designed to counter PSI enabled Protoss and physically modified Zerg. They do have some tricks up their sleeves.

"Stim!" Bronze ordered loudly. He pressed a button, and immediately an injector stabbed him in the neck and injected a type of stimulants into his body. Normally stim packs used for marines and marauders, but they can also be used on mech pilots, allowing them to reflex and act faster.

For a second, the speeding blasts that he could barely see before seemed to be going in slow motion. Bronze grinned and controlled his Vikings and dodged all the blasts. His fighter engaged the control ship and unleashed a round of Torpedo. The missiles hit the control ship and created an explosion that teared the thick armor and destroyed three anti-fighter guns. However, it did little impact simply because the size of the control ship meant it can't be destroyed by a single round of missiles.

The other Vikings accomplished a similar thing as they fired on the control ship, with little impact.

The Naboo pilots, however, were less fortunate. Within a round of fire, five fighters blew up into a pile of flame. The surviving fighters fire at the control ship, but their anti fighter guns barely damaged the armor. After all, the flying corp was designed to chase down pirates and patrol the air. They are neither trained nor equipped for this. They need bombers for this type of assault mission, and a lot of them.

"Amy, what is your situation?" Amy frowned as she heard Brian asking through the mike.

"I lost one Viking. Our number is too small to take down the ship!" Amy said as she dodged another round of blasts and fired at the control ship. The missiles sabotaged a number of defense structures, but that's it.

"Focus. Think of a way." Brian suggested. He sat in a chair in the commanding center, deep in thought.

"I can't think when I'm busy not getting killed!" Amy barked as she made a spin.

"In the original story the Naboo pilots didn't have enough firepower to destroy the ship. But how did they win?"

"Anakin Skywalker got in a plane and somehow destroyed the ship!" Amy said annoyed. "But he's not here.."

"How?" Brian said calmly. For a moment he seemed so intelligent, like everything is in his control. "How did Anakin destroy the ship with just a fighter?"

"His fighter got into the hanger of the control ship and..." Amy suddenly paused as she came up with a plan."destroyed it from within... Thanks Brian, I owe you one." She turned off the comm with the commanding center and turned to the members of the assault fighters.

"I have a plan..."

* * *

 **I was planning on making a very long chapter that concludes the battle of Naboo, but it seems to be taking too long... So I'm updating this chapter first and the next will follow in a few days.**

 **Review for questions, comments, and suggestions. If anyone wants to create an OC character, contact me. I only mentioned a few commanders to leave open the space...**

 **If you find this story interesting, than don't forget to follow.**

 **Enjoy.**


	12. Betrayal (2K)

**I was planning to stall the breaking of the team for a while, but now that so many readers are complaining...**

 **Here's "Betrayal"...**

* * *

"Sir, 24% of the static defense mechanism has been taken out. But these fighters can't break through our armor." On the Trade Federation droid control ship, a commander droid reported to a Neimoidian seated at the captain seat. He was watching the fighters circling around the control ship, occasionally letting off a few missiles but accomplishing little.

The captain took up a bottle of liquor and took a sip. He seemed less like a captain in battle but rather a gamer before a computer.

"The Queen is foolish in thinking a few fighters can really destroy us." The captain put down the bottle and smirked. Before the enormous vessel that held hundreds of members of the Federation and thousands of droids, the mere handful of fighters seemed so insignificant. His ego made him ignore how this handful of fighters destroyed most of the vulture droids he sent out and are now circling and besieging his ship and there's nothing he can do about it.

A droid walked up. His head painted yellow, signifying his rank as a commander. He seemed hesitantly in speaking.

"Ah, sir? According to the photograph taken, it appears that most of the damage down are not due to the Naboo fighters but are instead caused by a type of strange fighter whose source remains unknown. They have never been recorded in combat before." The commander reported. It tapped something on the computer, and the hologram of a Vikings was portrayed into the air.

"Shall we report that to Lord Sidious?" An adviser suggested. He feels like it's important.

The captain thought for a while. "No, these fighters are weak and insignificant. They don't deserve the attention of Lord Sidious." He stated. Unfortunately for him, his undermine of the Terran technology led to the ultimate demise of him and his ship.

"Sir, the fighters are assembling." A security droid walked up and reported. The captain turned around and realized the flying fighters have digressed.

The captain frowned. There's no motive for the fighters to gather as even together they can't break through the armor completely but will instead provide an easier target."Where?"

"Outside the hanger."

The captain suddenly came to a terrifying conclusion. One that is so obvious that even someone like him can realize.

"Close the gate! Close the gate!" He barked to the piloting droids. The heavy, quadruple layered hanger gate can make the hanger the second safest and unbreakable place, just second to the cockpit, but it was opened to release the vulture droids, and he never bothered closing them. A huge mistake that comes with a terrible cost.

The droids piloting the ship tapped on the computer, and the metal gate started closing, but it was too late. The Vikings were already outside, and there were little static defense that survived long enough to stall them.

"Transform!" Amy shouted as she and three other Vikings dashed through the opening and entered the hanger. One Viking was lost on the trip here. An explosive blast got him.

Along with the press of a button, Amy's Vikings twisted and turned. Two steel legs came out and slammed into the metal floor, stabling the fighter. Two Gatling Cannons replaced the Torpedoes as the weapon. The Vikings did a similar thing as they ran over several battle droids.

"Uh oh..." A commander droid said as he saw one of the Vikings slightly lifting its steel limb, revealing three crushed battle droids, or what's remaining of them. "Blast them!" He ordered, and security droids with red plating walked up and fired at the Vikings.

"Pathetic." Amy said as she watched the droid trying to break the armor of the Vikings with their blasters, but the armor, designed to withstand missiles, held strong. She turned around and knocked two battle droids into the air with her shoulder plating. The droids smashed into the wall and transformed to piles of wasted metal.

The three other Vikings aimed their Gatling cannons at the battle droids and fired. The string of fire and steel cleared all opposition. After 30 seconds, all red blasts were gone and the entire ground was covered with destroyed battle droids. The Vikings started unleashing on the surrounding.

"Do something! Deploy the droids!" The once calm and patient captain ordered swiftly as more and more portion of the ship started exploding and burning. He's a business man, not a soldier. The closest he ever got to war was sitting in a completely safe stronghold and waiting for news of victory. Getting into life threatening situation was never part of his expectation.

"Rallying all security droids on deck to the hanger now."

But the captain have had enough. He doubted the security droids, only armed with light weapons, can take down those machines."You assume command." He said to the commander droid before standing up and walking out of the front door. "Prepare an escort. I am getting out of here."

Amy closed her eyes and felt a high density of heat in a certain part of the hanger. The Power Source. In the prequel, Anakin was able to destroy the entire control ship from within by accidentally firing at the power source, which caused the power source to explode, which led to a chain explosion that completely shattered the ship. Otherwise, as menacing as the Vikings are, there Gatling cannons are not enough to completely evaporate the vessel.

The Vikings focused fire on the vulnerable reactor. The thin plating helped stalling the explosion for two seconds before being penetrated by the rounds.

"Let's get out of here!" Amy barked. The five elite Vikings transformed into fighter mode and flew out of the collapsing hanger. Maybe the control of the hanger gate got destroyed or something, because the fighters were able to easily fly out of the control ship. There, she found what's left of the yellow fighters.

"How's the attack?" The Naboo captain asked. He noticed how most of the defense of the droid ship was down but the control ship seemed intact.

Just as he finished his sentence, the droid ship contracted and exploded. There were no sound in space, but everyone saw the shock wave that dissembled the ship from inside and sent stray bits and pieces of metal and flesh throughout the space. Most of the metal pieces couldn't harm the fighters as the pilots were quick enough to dodge them.

However, the droid piloting one certain shuttle isn't. The Neimoidian captain had the time to scream in fear before his shuttle followed the fate of the ship he commanded. To a certain degree, the captain went down with his ship.

On the other side, the Naboo captain smiled in relief, and the Naboo pilots cheered loudly. At long last, the threat is finally over.

"Brian, we are done here. The target have been neutralized." Amy said as she held a weak and tired smile.

"Good." Brian said, not as relaxing. "Saizo, are the droids gone?"

"The droids are." Saizo replied. In the plain field, a group of elite marines were walking through a mountain of dead marines and disabled droids. Saizo's hands gripped tightly into a fist.

"But I can't find Victor."

* * *

"What do we do what do we do? The attackers are breaching the defenses!" In the throne room, Gunrey and an adviser were pacing around, worried.

"We need to call the droid army back! And where's that beast?" The adviser questioned. He's too worried to refer to Darth Maul politely.

"Sir, we have lost contact with the command ship." A security droid walked in. Unlike the battle droids, the security droids happened to have a lot more intelligence and wren't controlled by a single computer. They can communicate with each other and react to different situations.

"What? How?" Gunrey asked but then realized the answer is not going to matter. His plan is done. "Prepare a shuttle. We are leaving this place!" For a second he wished he never attacked Naboo. But it's too late.

"Ahhhh!" The door opened, and a security droid at the door screamed as it got penetrated by a round of electromagnetic powered bullets. The security droids in the room tried to fight, but they didn't stand a chance.

"Viceroy Gunrey," Cassidy smiled as she walked in the room, stepping on a security droid, crushing its head. Gunrey obviously flinched with the loud crack. "You are now under the custody of the Terran dominion."

"Don't hurt me. I surrender." Gunrey raised his hands. It's over for him, for now. But he's not worried. Trade Federation is wealthy and powerful, and despite this failure, he is still an important member of the Federation. He will be fine.

"The viceroy is captured." Cassidy touched the comm, a scent of achievement in her voice.

But Brian doesn't sound so entertained. His voice sounded deep, as if he was surprising his anger."Bring Gunrey back. And...come to me ASAP."

"Ok..."Cassidy trailed off. It seems like she pissed Brian off, somehow. "Let's move."

* * *

Cassidy was surprised when she found a white ship in the base. It's a medivac, an aircraft that can heal biological units. Is someone injured?

Frowning, she walked into the commanding center, where Brian was standing. As she walked in, she failed to notice the amount of units around the base.

"You wanted me to come, why?" She asked softly.

"Victor refused to leave the battlefield when the situation became bad." Brian stated quietly. "When Amy succeeded and Saizo got to the field, he found Victor lying on the ground, heavily wounded."

Cassidy is really confused. What does this have to do with her?

"I built a medivac, but the medic told me she's not sure if Victor can make it. Even if he can, he...might not be who he used to be. Victor is a close friend of mine."

"It's not your fault..." Cassidy tried to comfort Brian. She had no idea what he had planned for her.

"You're right." Brian stated as he suddenly waved his hand, and a group of elite marines entered the commanding center and aimed at Cassidy. "It's yours."

"What the..." Cassidy trailed off as she scanned the surrounding, frowning slightly when she noticed a commander among them. "What are you doing?"

"You are a brilliant tactician, Cas." Brian said. "But you are also a terrible human being. You are brutal and cruel, and you don't care who you hurt as long as you get what you want."

"And I hate to think what type of person you will be if you have the entire Terran army behind you..."

"You will be worse than the Sith..."

"So I will stop that from happening in the first place..."

"You are delusional!" Cassidy exclaimed, doing her best to calm the situation down. She's not afraid of these marines, no, but now is not the best chance to break away. So it's time to play innocent. "What makes you think I'm a villain? I did everything for us! I did what has to be done!"

"You condemned Victor for his failure in Theed. That's why he refused to leave." Brian stated.

"That was not my intention!"

"Really? I saw the reaction Victor made to your words. He's hurt and ashamed. You planned everything."

"Then why didn't you stop me?" Cassidy smirked. "If you were so intelligent. You could've saved your friend and prevented this from happening in the first place."

"How about the Banshee attack?" Brian avoided the previous topic. "The one that killed countless marines? You knew Amidala had a plan that will work, and yet you chose the way that leads to unnecessary death."

"..." Cassidy couldn't come up with any solution for this one. What can she say? She's too proud to surrender?

"And, do you know the hit and run in Theed resulted in the death of dozens of civilians? Women and children." Brian stated. "One of the marines told me you ordered them to kill any who might pose a threat. One of the boys was killed because he was scared by the soldiers and was crying. The marine, under your order, silenced him. Do you deny that?"

Cassidy paused for a while before suddenly smiling mockingly. "You are no better than me, Brian. You didn't replace me earlier because you needed me to win this battle for you. You allowed me to fight and potentially kill more innocent. But now that this fight is over, and the next war on Geonesis is dozens of years later, you no longer need me..."

"You realize I am the only one that might pose a threat to your rule, which is why you want to make sure I can never threaten your power again..."

"This talk of avenging the victims and Victor. This is all just an excuse you use to cover up your true intention of murdering those who doesn't blindly follow you. You don't care about the innocent. You are no different than me."

"True." Brian said quietly but steadily. "I lie and use tricks, but I do so for a grander purpose. I use dark ways for bright intentions. You use dark ways for evil objectives or for your personal entertainment. I can not allow that...But I guess there's no point in trying to convince you."

He turned to the marines. "Kill her."

* * *

 **Review for questions, comments, and suggestions...**


	13. Escape (2K)

**Unfortunately, most of the main characters will be alive for quite a while...Which means Cas might have to run away and lick her wounds. Now is not the time for the grand collision.**

* * *

After giving the order, Brian turned around and left the commanding center. He sees himself as a thinker, not a killer. He uses his mind and intelligence to use others to work for him. He never gets his hands dirty.

"Look, I'm sure we can come to a peaceful agreement. You're called Saizo, right? I..." Cassidy grinned.

"Why do you want to know?" Saizo replied.

"So I can correctly carve your name when I bury you." Cassidy smiled as she ignited her blue blade. "You have no idea what..."

She didn't finish the sentence, because Saizo lifted his rifle and fired a single round at her. Cassidy smiled mockingly as she felt the layer of plasma around her. However, the bullet, instead of hitting the plasma shield and stopping, exploded. A wave of blue light exploded. Cassidy fell on the ground, clutching to her head and groaning in pain.

"Do you honestly think you are the only physic commander around here?" Saizo said coldly. "If you were more carefully, you will realize individuals with PSI abilities can fell the presence of each other. I felt your special as soon as you landed, and I told Brian, and he approached you and made you think you have gained our trust. You have no idea how funny it is to watch you act like you are superior to us. You idiot."

Wait, so they knew about me all along?

Cassidy cursed. She was toyed by someone she undermined, and it feels bad. This type of failure have never happened before in her life. She wanted to stand up and draw her blades and slash the individual before her to pieces. But she felt extremely dizzy, and the world seemed to be turning around her. She needs to get out off here.

"Don't bother getting up. That was an EMP round that can temporarily disable one's PSI ability. You are now weaker than a single marine." Saizo put his gun next to Cassidy's head. "Any last words?"

"Yes." Cassidy forced the words through her teeth. "Warp me in."

"What?"

"I'm not talking to you." Cassidy said just before a light beam came out of the void and covered her. Her body started to disappear.

"No!" Saizo shouted as he pulled the trigger. If this girl escapes, then sooner or later she will return to threaten the commanders. And he can't allow that. At the same time as he pulled the trigger, he ordered the marines to fire.

A wave of bullets covered the light beam. But as the beam disappeared, Saizo found no body on the ground...

* * *

"Ahhh." Cassidy screamed as she fell down on the ground, a pool of blood forming on the ground. She wore the executor armor the second the marines came in, but the EMP round disabled the plasma shield and the Psionic blade, leaving her completely vulnerable when she was wrapping. As a result, countless rounds hit her.

" _Get her inside_." The adjacent ordered as soon as Cassidy entered. The zeolet walked up and carried Cassidy into the Nexus, there, a green healer beam hit Cassidy, and her wounds gradually stopped bleeding.

 _I...I need more power._ Cassidy thought darkly as she rested on a bed. She is relatively safe, but her mind was still filled with flash backs of what just happened. She just got played by those she viewed as pawns and tools for own success. Instead, she was used as a tool, a weapon.

She never valued them as real enemies, and that costed her dearly.

If she were to be more careful, she would be able to realize the Terran's intentions and how she might be blown. If not that, she should've came up with a backup plan, like what she always did back on earth.

On the other hand, she was too weak. If she were stronger in terms of psionic level, then the EMP round would not have affected her as much. In that case, she will be able to resist the marines and potentially slaughter them. Instead, she is now heavily injured, and her enemies are celebrating their victory.

She has never failed like this before in her life, and she intends to wash off the shame.

And to do that, to break through every Terran and their allies, she will need not just an army but a fleet. The Golden Armada.

The best way is obviously plunder the Terran, who were rich after the battle of Naboo, and use the loot to build her own army. However, the Terran are a hard nut to crack, especially after _she_ took out their greatest enemy. She needs to get to a new place and find a way to get to new resources.

Revenge can wait.

'But first she needs to get off this planet. As soon as she gets a period of time to freely explore, she's confident that she'll be able to return with more forces.

 _Wrap in an observer and position it above the Terran base. I want to know what the commanders are doing the second they did the action._

 _As you wish, executor._

Observers don't cost any vespine gas, luckily.

After the observer got constructed, it was immediately warped into the Star Wars dimension and placed above the Terran base of operation. Permanently invisible, the observer started gathering information, image and audio alike, and transported them back to Cassidy. For a moment Cassidy felt she had everything in control.

...

 _"Commander, we now have enough minerals necessary for the construction of a battlecruiser. However, our gas count is still lacking." Adjacent._

 _"Queen Amidala granted us access to all of Naboo's vespine geyser. We will be able to mine enough gas within three days. The construction of a battlecruiser will take around ten days. After it's done, we will be able to walk out of Naboo." Amy._

 _"Amidala has also given us an inhabited planet under Naboo's control. There, we will be able to set up a true home of all Terran." Brian._

 _"Brian, I am still worried about Cas. The way she disappeared. Something is not right. She might be out there right now, waiting for a chance to strike at us." Saizo._

 _"Double the patrol." Brian. "All units report in every five minutes. If any unit fails to report in, deploy reinforcements right away and scan the entire area. And, Saizo, switch into the ghost gear. Snipe Cass as soon as you can."_

 _"Ok."_

...

Cassidy opened her eyes. She needs to get out off this planet before the battlecruiser finishes up. The Protoss doesn't have a ship for now, due to the lack of gas, but the Terran does. She didn't even bother considering the Naboo ships.

The best choice is obviously a Viking.

She needs to take it and run as fast as she can and hopefully before the Terran can react and deploy their Vikings to stop her.

But first, she needs to get into a heavily defended Terran base who's aware of her presence.

She'll need some help, or rather some drugs...

Her eyes rested on a new base.

 _Adjacent,I remember we have 400 minerals..._

* * *

At night, most of the Terran were asleep. Even clones can't work 24/7. However, there were still dozens of marines patrolling the camp. Two bunkers were manned by two marines each.

In the northern part of the camp was a plain field that acted as the hanger for the dozen or so Vikings. After the victory, the Terran were given the remains of the droid army and the right to mine vespine gas on Naboo. This led to a great increase in the amount of resource and thus increased the army size.

Three marines were patrolling beside the Vikings. Their chest armor carried a bright lamp that not only brought light to the darkness but also made the marines a target.

"Why do you think we need to be this cautious?" A marine asked as he poked a pile of grass with his rifle.

"I heard one of the commanders went rogue, according to our leader." A comrade of his replied. "Rumor says she's a ghost."

"A ghost?" The first marine complained. "Where's our raven and missile turrets?" Due to the need to built the battlecruiser as soon as possible, Brian ordered the cut down of most of the unnecessary spending. True, the orbital command can scan and reveal cloaked units, but that's extremely inefficient and ineffective.

"Cut the chatters." The marines turned and found a commander with her head mask open. They immediately put their hands to their left chest to show respect. Amy nodded and then turned around. She got sleepless and decided to take a walk outside. "Mind your own business. The rogue commander can be anywhere."

"Yes ma'am." The marines replied. Amy nodded and was about to turn around when she saw a flash, along with the sound of three bodies falling on the ground.

"What the?" Amy looked up and found Cassidy standing by the three severed marines. But she seemed...off.

Her eyes shined a red light, and she had red blades on her arms. That's strange, because from what is shown in a scan of Theed during operation "hit and run", Cassidy used a blue blade. Plus, she seemed to be way faster than she was. Her armor was red rather than blue, and sharp blades came out of the elbow part of the girl. With all the red and the swift and brutal death of the marines, Cassidy seemed like a fearless warrior.

Amy immediately lifted her rifle and fired at the Protoss. But she knew this is only a stalling technique.

"Command, this is Amy. Code Red. Code Red! Cass is spotted in the hanger! Send rein...Cough Cough..." Amy's voice trailed off as Cassidy disappeared into a wave of energy and solidified before her. She knocked off her rifle and grabbed her by the neck and held her up. Amy tried to resist as she hit and kicked. But there were little effect.

Cassidy lifted her right arm and positioned her red bane blade beside Amy's head. She's aiming for the kill. Amy wasn't directly related to the betrayal, but she knew about it and didn't utter a word. But just as she is able to slice down on her, she felt her actions suddenly slowing down. Her psionic shield shock greatly, as if sustaining some sort of her psionic level was any weaker the shield would've been broken, but thanks to the terrazine she easily withstood the ability.

But Cassidy immediately dropped Amy. Not because she's merciful, but because she realized the source of the psionic wave came from Amy.

She's very similar to her.

She's also psionic.

Not only so, she's also not Terran. At least not completely. She's a Zerg.

For a moment a lot of things went through Cassidy's mind. Under the enhancement of the Terrazine, she was about to notice things she failed to notice before. For instance, the physical strength of the girl before her is stronger than most terran, even most ghosts. Plus, she sensed zerg organism in Amy's body. The psionic wave that blasted her was another indication.

Now the problem is, should she kill Amy and eliminate a potential enemy, or should she leave her be.

Amy fell on the ground. Her psionic skill was not as powerful as that of Cassidy, especially after the girl inhaled Terrazine. Thanks to the legacy of the zerg, she experienced quicker reflex and stronger physical strength, and she was about to use some skills when she's very emotional. But the abilities are relatively weak, especially since sh never had a chance to collect any essence.

This is why she's lying on the ground, hoping Cassidy will grant her mercy. Still, hidden from view, a piece of spine came out of her right arm. If Cassidy wants her dead, she'll have to at least pay a price.

Luckily, the sound of footsteps closing in was enough to end the dilemma.

Cassidy gave one meaningful look at Amy before turning around and running to a Viking. The door to the cockpit was locked, and it slowed Cassidy down for three seconds. When the marines arrived, they merely saw a Vikings flying away and a battered commander. Of course, three dead marines were on the ground.

"Vikings, chase her down!" Brian ordered, but everyone knew it was too late. Cassidy could totally escape during the time period the Viking pilots mount and lift into the air.

Even worse, Vikings are space fighters, which means Cassidy can escape into the space and go anywhere she want. True, Vikings are not the fastest ship, but Cassidy can always get into another ship and wrap away.

They just allowed a captured tiger into the mountains.

* * *

 **Cass is not the protagonist. I repeat, Cass is not the protagonist. This is why things will not always go as she wishes and the intelligence level of the other characters are all legit. Plus, Cass is not the only special one.**


	14. Self Reflection (K)

In the space above Naboo, Cassidy laid back on her chair and took a breathe. She briefly closed her eyes. When she opened them a few seconds later, the red light faded away, and her pupils turned blue again.

She clearly felt the endless power, along with the illusions, that came from the Terrazine wearing off. When she had the Terrazine inside her, she felt she could do anything she want. She could defeat every single one of her enemies and make them suffer. She had the strength to smash through any sort of conspiracy that is against her.

But that feeling is gone now, and she's back to the tricked outcast.

For a second she almost wanted to grab another injection of Terrazine. She knew she could. There were tons of Terrazine back in the Tal'darim Nexus that she just created. She also has the reason to do so. Even though most of the strength faded away, she could sense a fraction of PSI energy left inside her. This fraction of energy is gradually becoming one with her body, increasing her PSI abilities. If she continuously inject the Terrazine, she can become more powerful than any Jedi or Sith to ever walk this land.

But she knew better than being enslaved by strength. When she took the injection, she could literally feel voices whispering in her ears, encouraging her to destroy any opposition. That's what caused her to charge into the marines mindlessly. At first, she was planning to sneak past the marines with the enhanced PSI abilities and get out of there without being noticed.

The voice controlled her for a second.

She doesn't like the feeling of being controlled, which is why she doesn't want to inject anytime soon, despite the impressive effect.

Cassidy signed and considered her future plans. Her final goal is creating an invincible fleet. But judging from the cost of the zeolets, she'll need countless resources to do so. Looting and buying resources will never satisfy the amount needed. That's why she needs to find a planet that she can have total control over and can continuously mine off.

But then Cassidy realized how unprepared she was. She knew almost nothing about the galaxy and where the stars are.

That's when she saw a cargo ship a distance away.

* * *

Back on Naboo, Amy returned tiredly to her depot. Brian didn't blame her for not stopping Cass. They both knew she couldn't, especially after how Cas easily slaughtered the three marines guarding the Vikings. In fact, Amy was lucky to survive the attack.

But Amy wasn't satisfied in surviving. From the information stored in the genes, genes she received when she was turned, she realized the "traitor" was someone like her. True, she's a bit different, but nonetheless she is similar.

And this person similar to her just got branded as a traitor and was forced into exile.

This rang an alarming bell. From what she saw, Cass contributed as much in the battle as she did, perhaps even more. But even so Brian managed to turn everyone against her with a few tricks. Facing the might of the Terran forces, even Cass, after doing something to enhance herself, had to run away.

What happens when Brian finds out she's not a pure Terran too?

He will almost certainly turn his back on her and rally the other commanders against her. Cass had two PSI blades and powerful skills, but she was exiled nonetheless.

Amy might not even have a chance to run away.

Amy's power came from essence. The more essence she consumes, the more powerful she becomes. At first, Amy was planning to find some sinner and consume them. That was when Brian went to her and showed her a footage. A footage containing the information on how Cass is not a normal Terran. A video containing how she slashed through battle droids without much effort. After the footage, Brian's friend, Saizo, showed her, and a number of other commanders, what was known as PSI abilities.

Brian explained to her that Cass is gifted, and is more powerful than the rest of them. Coincidentally, she is also someone who doesn't value the idea of good and evil and has no consideration of innocent lives. If she is left untouched, then she will be a threat to the entire universe.

The other commanders were convinced and showed their support to Brian. Amy complied as well. But even though she didn't knew Cass was this similar to her, she was still worried. What happens if Brian considers her as a "threat to the universe" and decides to kill her as well?

So she postponed the process of collecting essence in case she's spied on. She also did her best to act like a normal human being. Leading the Vikings in an assault on the droid control ship was just an attempt she made to help the Terran in a normal way.

During the assault, she acted as normal as possible. However, when she lost a crew member, she got slightly upset. An upset Amy created a Psionic blast that disabled all enemy units within an area. She regretted her action as soon as she regained her senses, but luckily the wave disturbed the surveillance Brian placed on her as well. That's why she remained free.

And that's also why she was practically defenseless when she encountered Cass. Her lack of essence made her weak, and her attempt to immobilize Cass failed dramatically. If Cass wasn't merciful she'd be dead already.

Amy smashed onto the desk. She needs to collect essence as soon as possible. It will be risky, but she will learn from Cass's experience. She'll be nicer and more tolerant, and she'll be more careful. After all, she will need a Terran army at her disposal. Her ability to produce underlings can be...quite difficult.

* * *

Brian walked into the the a chamber in the commanding center and locked the door. He closed his eyes and started pacing around, deep in thought.

He had been planning on taking complete control of the Terran forces from as soon as he knew what happened when they first arrived on Naboo. When the droid patrol attacked, he came up with the idea of repelling them, and thus established his dominant position in the team.

When the units were created, Brian secretly ordered their loyalties to be directed to him. All the Terran units were controlled by a bio-chip to ensure their loyalty and their bravery. These bio-chips are what makes Terran units utterly fearless and fit to compete against the zeolet Protoss and the hive-minded Zerg. By doing so, he had the control of every single Terran unit, including the elite guards.

He has every movement of the other commanders in check without them being suspicious at all.

But that's not enough. What he did was not flawless, for if someone manages to reprogram the bio-chips in the units producing structures, then he might be facing a Terran civil war.

Of course, few people can realize his plan, but there are some people who is certainly capable of uncovering his secrets. Cassidy was one of the "some people."

Cassidy have shown a great amount of intelligence and tactical mind throughout the battles. But he first noticed her when they first landed on Naboo. She was one of the few people that remained completely calm. That's when he started keeping an eye on her.

Later, when fighting the droid patrol, the girl easily took out a battle droid. Obviously there were commanders that did better than her, but she just fired one single shot, which found its target. She didn't even bother firing multiple times because she knew she will not miss.

At that time, he just thought she might be somewhat special, but not enough to threaten him. That was when he noticed Saizo.

Saizo was almost as special as Cass was. He swiftly took down droids as if he knew where they would be in the future. It's...as if he was a force user. That's why he approached him when the fighting ended.

Turns out, unlike the other commanders, Saizo was not a student. Instead, he was just a normal person at the wrong place in the wrong time. His identity made it hard for him to go along with the other commanders, but that's not what appeals to Brian.

Saizo explained to Brian how he felt different after he landed. He felt faster and stronger, and more importantly he could sense the others' movement, and sometimes even bits and pieces of thought. He could also feel a surge of energy within him.

Brian welcomed Saizo into his plan and opened up to him. Saizo was hoping that Brian will rise to power and eventually find a way to return to earth, and Brian needed Saizo's strength. The cooperation went without any obstacle.

Saizo told Brian about Cassidy, and how he felt she might be similar to him. That made Brian worry. If she can also sense thoughts, then she might be able to shatter his plan. He decided to spend sometime and learn more about the girl he ignored back on earth.

As the fighting for Theed continued, Brian realized that Cassidy is not someone who's willing to yield to a high lord. Instead, she cares for no one but herself, and her pride, or rather arrogance, is disturbing. That's when her harm is exceeding her contribution, and he decided to end her.

Still, before that, he needed the girl's intelligence and tactical mind to win the battle. That's when he pretended to be rash and emotional. That way, Cassidy wouldn't feel threatened. When she realizes she's tricked, it will be too late.

Cass seemed completely unaware of a thing the commanding center, recently upgraded to Orbital command, can do. The device can do a scan of a large area and spot most things within the area of effect. It wasn't hard to scan an area that Cass was ravaging through. With the footage, turning the other commanders was an easy thing.

However, there was a...deviation in the execution part of the plan. Despite the EMP round, Saizo failed to capture Cassidy. Through some sort of ability, she managed to get on a Viking and get off this planet and thus away from his influence.

It's disappointing, but not critical. She is branded a traitor and will never be able to return and threaten her rule. Despite her PSI ability the girl is alone, without an army at her back. A single battlecruiser can take her down for sure. He, on the other hand, is on the way to something greater.

Brian walked to the window and stared off into a starport. The building had instruction lights on and was working 24/7. A few days later, a war machine will be built.

And he will be able to travel to a planet for the Terran.

It will be the beginning of something great.

* * *

 **Any suggestions for how Amy produces her units?**

 **This short chapter hopefully explains a little about the three main characters in the story and how they felt and how their powers are. This should bring some clarification on what happened before and who knows what.**


	15. Korriban (2K)

**Sorry of the relatively late update. I was busy...**

 **PS. I am starting to run out of names, so can someone review and provide some names for random/potentially important characters in the story?**

 **PPS. 23 Favorites, wow...Can I get 30?**

* * *

The space seemed endless. The nearest planet was out of sight range, and for the members above the ship "Voyager", this is not a good sign. This is due to the two pirate ships behind them.

"Oh hell!" In the cockpit, the captain of the cargo ship frowned. Voyager is a transport that has no weapon that can properly shoot back. After all, it is merely a ship owned by a captain who seeked to earn a fortune after the crisis on Naboo. After the Trade Federation blockade the people on the planet must be in desperate need of products. Import some products elsewhere and bring it to the planet, and you can sell them at twice the price or more. It's extremely profitable.

But on the other hand the captain was merely someone who happened to have a ship and had some money. He spent everything he owned on buying the fuel, preparing the ship, and importing products to maximize the profit. Unfortunately he wasn't able to, or chose not to, arm his ship or hire some protection. After all, what are the chances of meeting a group of pirates in the wrong place at the wrong time? Cut the money on protection and he can earn hundreds of thousands more credits.

This is why he feels like cursing himself when his ship was intercepted by a brand of pirates. Hell, they had interdiction fields up and ready!

He was going to assume someone gave out his information, but that's when he saw a group of broken cargo ships beside. It seems like he wasn't the only one who came up with the idea. Just as merchants like him took advantage of the recent turmoil and the relative power vacuum, the pirates were taking advantage as well. After all, the Naboo royal space corp was severely hit during the droid invasion, and the republic wouldn't send in fleets to take care of small groups of pirates like them.

The pirates have free reign over this space, for now.

A beacon on the computer screen of the ship blinked. The captain knew what it meant. He took a deep breathe and pressed the spot. Quickly, the hologram of a strange looking figure was projected. The figure wore a black eye patch over his left eye. He had a black suit on him, as if that concealed his true identity of a pirate.

"This is Captain Byron here speaking." The pirate captain announced as he gave a slight bow to show respect. A strange thing to see on a pirate. "Close your engine and make no resistance. My men will board your ship. Don't try to resist. Submit, and I give you my word that I will bring you to a civilized planet safely."

"No No No!" The man gripped to his hair and groaned in despair. Everyone he owned is on this ship. If he surrender, he'll starve to death.

Byron frowned. "Credits cost a lot, but they mean nothing to a dead man." He warned. "I would prefer doing this the civilized way. Don't make me do this the barbaric way." He realized the cargo captain is not changing his mind, and so the pirate closed the communication and was about to order the boarding party to breach through the cargo door when he heard a man reporting.

"Sir, there's a fighter coming approaching."

"Are those Naboo fighters?" Byron narrowed his eyes. This is unexpected, but if it is a Naboo fighter, then he will have to leave. No matter how weakened they are, the Naboo royal flying Corp is still the official fighting force of an inhabited planet, and he has no intention of combating an entire planet. He's a pirate, not a maniac.

"No, it appears to be an unidentified fighter." A pirate replied. "It's not slowing down!"

"Destroy the fighter." Byron ordered as he moved the eye patch from left to right. "And make it thrilling. This might make our stubborn captain reconsider his decision." He walked to the deck and looked out the window.

He enjoyed watching things burn. It makes him feel like he has everything under control.

As the guns on the two pirate ships turned and aimed at the fighter, the aircraft made no move. Byron grinned cruelly as the guns fired red blasts at the fighter. He took a glass of liquor and poured some into a cup. His action was smooth and calm as he held the cup to his mouth.

However, that was when his eyes twitched. The fighter made a sudden acceleration and left the string of red blasts behind. It turned to the other pirate ship and let loose two torpedoes before turning back and flying and barely dodging a few blasts.

Luckily, it seemed like the fighter isn't armed enough to take his ships down. Byron took a deep breathe as the two torpedoes disappeared into the second ship with no obvious effect. That was when he saw an explosion suddenly coming out of the ship. Half of the ship was immediately engulfed in flame, while the other half was slowly dying.

Byron choked on the liquor in surprise. He coughed and dropped the cup, spilling the drink. But he had no time to pretend to be noble. He ran to the hologram and contacted the captain of the other ship.

"What happened? Lyke, report!" He barked, losing all patience.

"The torpedoes hit our core reactor!" Someone replied. "We need help! This ship is burning down!" His cry for help suddenly disappeared. Byron looked up and saw the rest of the other ship torn up with another explosion.

The captain's face twitched. He couldn't believe what he saw. How did one single, insignificant fighter destroy a ship hundreds of meters wide and protected with layers of armor?

Never could he imagine the strength of a PSI enabled pilot and a modified Viking.

"Sir, the fighter is coming around for another charge." The navigator said with a shaking voice. He was pretty calm when the fighter first came. In fact, he was staring at the fighter mockingly. But now he's shaking and trembling in fear.

"What do we do captain?"

"Give up this mission! Enter hyperspace!" Byron shouted. The navigator acted quicker than he ever did before as he plotted the ship into hyperspace, not really choosing a destination. A few seconds later, the ship entered hyperspace safely. Cassidy didn't try to stop them. It's pointless to kill a group of pirates. That's not what she's here for.

The Vikings stopped next to the cargo ship.

The cargo captain was barely done feeling excited from being saved from the pirates before realizing he was besieged by the fighter that saved him. Luckily, the interdiction field that prevented his hyperdrive from working is now gone. He can leave anytime he want.

The captain smiled as he moved to power up the hyperdrive.

He expected some sort of resistance from the fighter. Perhaps the pilot might try to blow him up, in which case he's in trouble. But no. He was allowed to initiate the hyperdrive. In fact, he was completely undisturbed as his cargo ship entered hyperspace.

That's when he heard footsteps behind him. He tried to turn, but someone grabbed him by the neck. The man struggled for a few seconds before passing out.

A grinning Cassidy emerged from behind and sat before the control panel.

"Now, how do I drive this thing?"

* * *

The cargo captain woke up and found himself tied up. A human being with blonde hair is sitting in his pilot seat. How did she get up there? He never opened the door.

"Who are you? What do you want?" The captain asked, doing his best to suppress his fear. His fate lies in the hands of this woman, and he needs to find out what she wants. If he's useless, then he might be silenced. Prove his worth, and he will likely live.

 _Warp away every single peace of nonessential material on this ship and transform them into resources._

Cassidy finished and turned to the captain. "Truth to be told I am not a great pilot." She stated. "But I need you to get me somewhere." She was plain and straight to the point.

"I can help you fly this ship." The captain replied. "But you have to give your word to not kill me." He bargained, realizing he's necessary to the girl.

"I give my word to not kill you." Cassidy's expression didn't change. "I want you to get me to this place." She clicked an area on the star map.

The captain frowned. "But there's nothing there! That's literally nowhere." He said.

"That's non of your concern." Cassidy replied coldly.

"Fine." The captain replied. "But remember what you said."

Cassidy nodded, hiding a cruel smile.

* * *

The hyperspace made travelling a lot faster. Still, a civilian use hyperspace is not the fastest type. Plus, where they were going was extremely far away from Naboo. It's so far that Cassidy and the captain had enough time to sit in the cockpit and stare boringly out of the windows.

"We've passed Yavin ten minutes ago Cas...sidy. Your destination will be reached in a few hours." The captain, Eddie, decided to use his formal reference as Cassidy gave him a warning glare. "Why do you want to go to the middle of nowhere anyways? Nothing is there."

"That is according to the star map." Cassidy replied as her right hand scrolled past her blonde, curly hair. "But there are things that aren't recorded."

Eddie poked near Cassidy, his breath touching her neck. He has grown an interest of the girl, especially since she's not a threat. After all, he is alone and she is attractive. "Is there anything else I can do?"

"Yes." Cassidy replied as a PSI blade stabbed Eddie in the back and penetrated his chest. The man gasped in both pain and disbelief before sitting back on the deck. No blood came out of his wound as the veins were sealed by the heat. His eyes stared at Cassidy, full of confusion.

She promised not to kill her, and she lied.

"I promised _I_ will not kill you, but I never said anything about my man killing you." Cassidy said coldly. A zeolet emerged from behind the corpse.

 _I can sense a scent of doubt in you. Why, zeolet?_

 _Executor. You ordered me to betray this man._

 _And?_

 _This is not the way of the Khala. We are the firstborn. We are the blades of justice. We don't use betrayal to achieve our goal. If we have enemies, we defeat them in a fair fight._

 _This is what has to be done, zeolet._

 _I can sense your lie, executor._

 _I am not lying. If this man gets into the hands of our enemy, then he will give out everything about us. Countless templer will die._

 _I can sense your lie. The Khala never lies._

 _Get back to the Nexus, zeolet._

 _...As you wish, executor._

Cassidy watched as the zeolet warped away. From the conversation she felt...threatened. For the entire time she trusted the Protoss race with her life. She did all she could to strengthen the Protoss, and by doing so risked everything she had. But now she couldn't help but think.

Are the Protoss really loyal to us?

Are the Terran really loyal to the commanders?

From what she saw on Naboo, the Terran units, marine and Vikings, bled and died for the commanders without a single sense of doubt. But she also realized the units were living, thinking human being. What happens when what the commanders ordered conflicted with their own code or preference?

Cassidy knew her point was unsupported and is probably wrong, but she couldn't stop thinking about it.

What happens if she constructs the Golden Armada, and suddenly they turned on her because she violated the way of the Khala?

Cassidy narrowed her eyes and made a decision. She walked up to the star map and located her destination. The home to the Sith. Korriban.

And she dropped a dot on the star map...

...and labelled it Slayn.

* * *

 **Questions? Comments? Concerns?**


	16. Dominion (2K)

Brian looked out of the window of the deck of the battlecruiser. Outside, all the Terran buildings were lifting up and entering the battlecruiser. Red flame came out as a result of burning fuel and powered the buildings into the huge capital ship. A while later they landed in the hanger of the battlecruiser, just beside dozens of Vikings.

"Every unit and building have boarded the ship." Saizo walked up and stated. "Those buildings that couldn't be lifted up and salvaged. We are clear for departure."

Brian nodded. "In that case, bring this ship up." The captain obeyed and gave out a few orders to the controllers at the computers, and a few minutes later, the enormous mechanical monster lifted into the air.

Its powerful plasma Yamato cannon shined in the center of the ship. 24 pairs of air to air laser batteries covered every angle of the ship and left no blind spot for potential enemies. Its fast firing rate made it terrific against large amount of fighters, and allowed the batteries to deal some damage to enemy cruisers. Below the ship were 32 pairs of air to ground surface bombardment guns that could ravage any ground army.

At the back of the battlecruiser was a warp drive. The device allows the battlecruiser to enter warp space and travel faster than the speed of light. In the center of the ship, behind layers of heavy armor, was the fusion reactor, which powered the entire ship.

The cruiser is a beast.

"Where shall we jump to?" The captain, with his formal army suit and a hat, along with a British accent, asked.

"Here." Brian replied as he pointed a spot on the star map in the sector Chommel. The planet was not populated, and was part of Naboo's territory. Amidala gave him the planet after how the Terran helped her retake Naboo from the Federation. To the queen, it is a worthy trade. The planet provided no benefit for Naboo as no one wanted to go there and the planet had no advantage. On the other hand, giving the planet to the Terran can secure an alliance between the two power. It's a win win situation for both parties.

"Yes commander." The site before the battlecruiser turned into a blue horizon as the ship entered warp space. "We will be arriving at the destination in three hours."

* * *

The medic bay aboard the battlecruiser was mostly empty. A medic was at the door. She quickly put her right hand to her chest as soon as she saw Amy walking up. A scent of purple was in the medic's eyes.

Amy walked into the medic bay and turned into a room. There, Victor was laying on the bed. He didn't suffer from too much physical wound, as the Nano droids of healing beam that the medic used on him healed most of the physical openings. However, what kept him unconscious was a brain damage. A strike on the head made his mind hazy.

Amy silently opened her right hand, palm facing upwards. At first her hand was empty. But then pure PSI energy was focused onto her palm, and a creature started to develop. A few seconds later, a small, three centimeter long insect was on Amy's hand. She carefully but the bug on Victor, and the bug crawled its way into Victor's head via his mouth.

The medic was behind Amy and saw the whole thing, but she didn't do or say anything.

Amy turned around and left the medic bay, not speaking a word. A few minutes after she left, Victor's eyes snapped open. A blur of purple was in his eyes, but it quickly disappeared.

* * *

"Commander," Brian was standing at the bridge when a medic walked up to him. "Commander Victor woke up."

"What, how?" Brian frowned in confusion, but then realize he might not be saying the nicest thing. "He's still in the medic bay?" He asked the medic, who shook her head. That's when he heard footsteps from behind.

The leader smiled and turned around. Victor was standing behind him. For once he didn't wear a commander grade armor, but instead had a normal t-shirt on. He was smiling warmly.

"Hey Brian." Victor grinned. His voice slightly weak. "It's being a while."

"Yes it is." Brian replied as he grabbed a chair for him. Victor smiled and sat down."I'm glad you're back to us. A lot have changed."

"Indeed. When I was there we had marines and bunkers. Now we have battlecruiser." Victor exclaimed as he looked around the deck. Dozens of pilots and officers were working to maintain the ship.

"Exactly."Brian smiled. "Speaking of battlecruisers, adjacent, tell the commanders to assemble at the bridge. If we are to use our resources efficiently and build up our planet as soon as possible, we are going to need a plan."

None of them mentioned anything about Cassidy. Victor felt it's his fault that Cass is forced into exile, and Brian was just happy Cass is gone.

Ten minutes later, all the Terran commanders were at the deck. In the middle was a huge star map. Brian was standing in the middle. He spoke with confidence and authority. He spoke like a leader.

"As you all know, we are currently going to a planet given to us by Queen Amidala of Naboo. That planet will be our first foothold in this universe, and from there, we will radiate our influence over the rest of the galaxy."

"In order for us to properly manage our military, we need to set up a proper chain of command. We need to set up a system of levels. I suggest we form a dominion." Brian continued. That's what he's getting at.

"But if we set up a chain of command and become, say, a dominion." A commander interrupted. "Then what's there to distinguish us and the incoming empire?"

"Whether we form a dominion or not is not a question." Brian said forcefully. "If we stand by ourselves and do whatever we think is right, then we will be weak. We will not be able to assemble all the resources and army we need to stop the incoming foe, whether it is the Separatist Alliance or the empire. We _must_ come together."

"If that's the right thing to do..." The commander nodded. "Then I comply." The others nodded in agreement as well.

Brian nodded and relaxed. If the commanders refused to follow him, then he would have to get real and do what he did to Cass. Battalions of marines were outside for "protection". But it's obviously better to use human commanders rather than Starcraft units.

Starcraft units can think and act, but they don't have the knowledge of Star Wars.

"As the current leader, I will be the emperor of the Terran dominion." Brian said without any sense of being polite. "Every commander will lead an active fleet, which will be composed of two normal battlecruisers, one elite battlecruiser as the flagship, and 50 Vikings. Every fleet will carry three three battalions and a number of siege tanks, banshee, and liberators."

"Every battalion will be made up of 3000 marines and 300 marauders, along with ten siege tanks and two Thors. Special units like ghosts and ravens will be assigned according to the mission the fleet is on."

"Any questions?"

"We don't have enough resources for all those units." Amy said quietly.

"We will." Brian replied confidently.

"What will be our place in the clone wars?" Victor asked carefully. "Will we be aiding the Republic or the Separatist Alliance?"

"The republic." Brian said. "It's not going to matter that much. If we become powerful enough during the Jedi purge, then we will be left alone no matter Palpatine succeeds or not. But if we are not strong enough, then we will go down whichever side we choose. But for the sake of gaining maximum advantage, we go along the republic."

The others nodded.

"When we arrive on the planet, we will start building SCVs and search for vespine geysers, which we will use to harvest vespine gas. As soon as we have enough resource, we will start building the fleets. There are twelve of us here, which means we need to construct twelve fleets, including twenty four normal battlecruisers, twelve elite battlecruisers and so on."

"This amount of units will require a long time to build, but hopefully we will have enough when the clone war breaks out."

"Apart from our active fleets, we also need fleets in key positions, including on our home planet and all the strategically important planets. They will have a similar setup with the active fleets but will have half the battalions and no elite or special units."

"We will arrive at the planet in two hours. Dismissed." The commanders nodded in obedience and stood up and left.

* * *

"What do you think about Bria...the emperor's choice?" In a room, two commanders were sitting there, talking. One of the commanders, a girl with red hair was speaking.

"What are you trying to say, Jess?" Amy asked.

"I mean...as far as I know only the bad guys are known as "emperors" and have absolute control via an empire or a dominion. Only republics are focusing on helping the people. By crowning himself the emperor, what difference is there between Brian and Palpatine?"

Amy smiled. "Does it matter?" She asked. "Before we somehow got here, I was nobody. The most important decision I made was whether I should bike or walk to school. My life had no purpose."

"But now I am about to have thousands of men under my command. I can wage war on a world if I want. I will soon have millions of lives at my fingertips. That's why I don't care what Brian wants. But I do know I will take down whoever wants to take my power away from me."

"If that's what you think..." Jess said slowly. She could barely recognize her friend. It seems like power corrodes people. She signed and left the room.

Amy sat expressionlessly. Her PSI ability allowed her to sense something Jess failed to know. She sensed how as soon as Jess left the room, someone else left as well.

Someone invisible. Someone cloaked. A ghost.

* * *

Back in the deck, Brian was sitting in a seat. His eyes were closed, as if he was meditating. The air before him twitched, and a man wearing a scary mask and carrying a large rifle appeared out of nowhere.

He's a ghost.

"Emperor, my brothers have returned with the responses of the commanders. Most of them were willing to support your reign. But one of them was doubting you. Should I order her termination?"

"No." Brian said without opening his eyes. "Now is not the time. Plus, someone that can be discovered by you so easily doesn't pose a threat to me. You may leave now."

"As you wish, emperor." The ghost's body disappeared into thin air, literally.

Brian signed and stood up. He walked to the star map and stared at the planet. The promised land that the Terran race will be staying for centuries.

He wrote something into the planet's document. A name and a line of description.

Capital planet of the Terran dominion.

Korhal.

* * *

 **For those who doesn't know what Korhal means, read the Starcraft history.**

 **By the way I am really out of names...**


	17. Tal'darim (3K)

**I might occasionally open polls on my profile page and ask about your opinions on certain things...Currently I have a poll open on whether or not I should bring in Starcraft heroes.**

 **And, by the way, the favorite of this story have reached 30, so I spent some time to make this chapter especially long...**

* * *

Cassidy took a deep breathe before the Tal'darim Nexus. The Tal'darim building appeared less glorious compared to the Aiur Nexus, but it seemed much more powerful. The structure radiated strength with its pointy ends and crimson coloring. Unlike the Aiur Protoss, the Tal'darim didn't spend time and effort in making their buildings shiny. Instead, they made their buildings as terrifying as possible.

Cassidy silently rested her right hand by her side, slightly calming down as she felt the tip of the PSI blade touching her skin. The cold weapon made her feel safer. She, slowly but steadily, walked into the Nexus.

Just like the Aiur Nexus, an adjacent was sitting in the Nexus. But his eyes were red from extracting power from the void.

"You are the new High Lord?" He smirked, using his PSI energy to disturb the air around him to create sound wave to communicate because the Tal'darim didn't use the Khala. He showed no respect, for the Tal'darim only respected the strongest.

"Be careful." Cassidy warned, slightly raising her PSI blade. "I am the only reason you exist, and I can be the reason you perish." If she hadn't made the decision to construct the Tal'darim Nexus, the adjacent wouldn't be there at all.

The adjacent sat down, noticing Cassidy's strength. Despite what he showed, Cassidy was still stronger than him. He's a warrior, just like all the Tal'darim, but he's not the best. He can fight, but there's no way he can defeat Cassidy, who's armed with the best equipment in the Protoss race and has a relatively high PSI level.

"I yield...for now." The adjacent said, "But the Tal'darim only obey the strongest. If you intend to command the Tal'darim race, you must be at the top of the chain of ascension."

Cassidy frowned. She knew the Tal'darim were militant, and she briefly heard about this "chain of ascension", but she was still used to how the units obeyed her and the others without question.

"Tell me about it."

"The chain of ascension decides the authority within our society. The High Lord is at the top of the chain, and all show obey his every will. Those of low ranks can not attack those of higher ranks. In fact, everyone obeys the order of those above their rank."

"Tal'darim warriors can rise in the chain of ascension by challenging the higher ranked in a Rak'Shir duel. In the duel, there are two sides, the low ranking challenger and the high ranked challenged. Both sides are usually ascendants who have powerful Psionic skills. Other Tal'darim can support ascendants. Some will bond with the ascendants and becoming supplicants, allowing the ascendants to gain complete control of their lives. Usually supplicants are relatively rare because being a supplicant means you give up everything to your ascendant."

"A Rak'Shir duel must end with one of the participants being defeated and pushed into the pit of ascension. If the higher ranked wins, he will keep his place. If the lower ranked wins, he will arise and take the place of the defeated. Only the strongest shall rule the Tal'darim."

"Interesting, but for now, I am the High Lord. Any dueling request?" Cassidy threatened. The adjacent bowed in obedience. "Good, now order the probes to construct two gateways. What are the units that I can create, given our current amount of resource?"

Seven probes slid out and started building up a building. "Probes can be created for 50 minerals per unit. Zeolets can be built with 1000 minerals, and supplicants with 500 minerals. There are a number of other units, but in order to create these units there must be Tal'darim individuals first. Even if there are enough individuals, the warriors must spend time meditating and injecting Terrazine to gain more power. It might take centuries to turn a Tal'darim zeolet into an ascendant. Our Nexus is able to create Tal'darim individual with the speed of two per day...But this speed can be increased by constructing more Nexus. We currently have two Tal'darim individuals."

"Good. First spend all but 2000 minerals in building probes and send the constructed probes out and scout this planet for resources. I want a full report on this planet, including the information on potential enemies."

The Nexus started glowing, and the probes were been assembled. Multiple probes slid outside the Nexus and went into distant targets. A blue flame powered the probe's movement and pushed it forward.

A building solidified into a scarlet building with sharp edges. The probe that constructed the building floated beside the gateway.

"Now, construct two zeolets." The two Tal'darim individuals were warped to the gateway, and were transformed into zeolets as the crystal on the gateway started glowing. They were getting equipped with PSI blade and plasma shield. Their neural cord was getting protected by a layer of armor. As the transformation occurred, Cassidy turned to the adjacent. "Meanwhile, tell me about all the Tal'darim units."

"Tal'darim zeolets are similar with Aiur zeolets, only more power. They can charge at the enemies and use their weapons to dismantle the foe of the high lord. At the bottom of the chain of ascension, zeolets are usually the most eager to prove themselves. In a battle, they will be zealously charging at their foul, and either slice the enemies into pieces or die trying. Zeolets need 1000 minerals to arm."

"Supplicants are warriors who are ultimately loyal ranged units that can sacrifice themselves to protect the ascendants. They are weak in attack but has a strong plasma shield, which allows them to protect their high lord. They cost 500 minerals to arm."

"Slayers are Tal'darim ranged units. They are made up of warriors who have given up rising in the chain of ascension and are focusing on serving the high lord. Their bodies are forged into a war machine to make them more effective in hunting down the enemies. Slayers attack with a particle disruptor and can be teleported to somewhere close with an ability known as blink. They are also armed with phasing armor, which allows them to serve their masters a while longer."

"Havocs are robots built to support our warriors in battle. They have the ability to detect cloaked units, allowing our warriors to locate and terminate such cowards. They can also help our warriors track down enemies easier. Havocs can create a force field that prevents middle or small sized enemies from passing through. Havocs can't attack, and they shouldn't need to. Havocs cost 500 minerals and 1000 gas."

"Ascendants are those who thrive in the chain of ascension. Their abilities are enhanced by centuries of absorbing of Terrazine. They can inject the energy of supplicants to gain more power. Ascendants can use several abilities, including psionic orb, which damages all units within contact with the orb, and mind blast, which deals substantial damage to a single unit. It might take a long time, even with the chrono boost of the Nexus, for an individual to be qualified as an ascendant. Arming an ascendant requires 1000 minerals and 2000 gas."

"Blood hunters are Tal'darim who learned the ability of cloaking themselves. They lurk in the shadows and answer directly to the high lord. Their duty in the Tal'darim society is to eliminate those deemed too weak to serve the high lord. All Tal'darim are brutal, but these warriors, trained to kill their own people, are the most ruthless. Arming a blood hunter requires 1250 minerals and 1250 gas."

"All of the units above are units produced by gateway, but we pride ourselves in our ability to find ways of destruction beyond merely our people. War prisms are transportation vessels that can load our warriors and unload them in battle. They can also be turned into phase mode, which creates an energy field with functions similar to a pylon. Of course, as a Tal'darim units, war prism is armed with a phase blaster. War prisms cost 2000 minerals."

"While some warriors are willing to die after defeated, others prefer to keep themselves alive to redeem their failures in another way. These warriors are armed with emergency extraction system that can warp the wounded out of the battlefield and into safety. These wounded warriors will be put into vanguards to serve the high lord. These warriors have lost their position in the chain of ascension, and their only wish is to die for the high lord. Vanguards require 2500 minerals and 1000 gas to arm. Their scatter cannons can deal a large amount of damage to a small area, making them efficient in thinning down the enemy numbers."

"One of our most powerful weapons is the wrathwalker. Wrathwalkers are enormous robots that uses their extremely powerful charged pulse blasters to attack the enemy units, ground and air alike. Their pulse blasters are strong enough to damage ships in low orbit. Their height allowed them to ignore the limits of the terrain. Wrathwalkers are usually preciously valued by the ascendants that own them and utilize their firepower to their own benefit. Wrathwalkers cost 30000 minerals and 20000 gas."

"The most powerful weapon of the high lord is the death fleet. Death fleet is made up of countless vessels, including a command ship and multiple support ships. They have enough firepower to burn planets and wipe out any enemy that dare challenge the high lord."

"Motherships are the commanding vessel within the death fleet. They are the ultimate weapon and the throne of the High Lord. It is in these motherships that the High Lord stands at watch his enemies perish in flame. Practically cities, motherships are four kilometers wide, four kilometers long, and one kilometer high, allowing them to carry thousands of Tal'darim warriors and countless war machines. As long as the energy supply is present, the plasma shields are impenetrable. Its terminator beam can burn down enemy ships and bombard enemy ground units. Motherships cost a grand total of 150000 minerals and 100000 gas, but they are worth the price."

"The major component of the death fleet is the destroyers. Destroyers are piloted by a single Tal'darim. They utilize bloodshard crystals to power a destruction beam, which can burn down enemy vessels, and if necessary, enemy warriors. Destroyers cost 25000 minerals and 15000 gas. As they are way cheaper than the motherships, destroyers make up the vast majority of the death fleet."

"...Impressive." Cassidy said after a while. That was when two figures exited the gateway. Their nerve cords were protected by a layer of armor. They wore an armor that was more symbolical than useful. After all, if the plasma shield was broken through, a layer of armor couldn't save the zeolet. Two red crystals were at the waist of the zeolets, and could be ignited into a bane blade. A layer of plasma shield was protecting the warrior. Cassidy walked out of the Nexus and confronted the zeolet.

"Bow down under me." She ordered, "And I will grant you a chance of ascension. Challenge me, and you will die painfully..." She ignited her PSI blade and let loose her level 8 PSI energy.

The zeolets exchanged a look. They could feel the dangerous vibe coming off Cassidy. They knew she'd kill them if they dare challenge her. They knelt down and bowed in submission.

Cassidy nodded, satisfied. "Spend your time meditating. I will provide you will sufficient amount of Terrazine. You might be the first two warriors under me, but more Tal'darim will come. The only way for you to climb up the chain of ascension is by getting stronger. So for the benefit of all of us, enhance yourselves."

"As you wish, high lord." One of the zeolets replied. His voice was deep.

"Good." Cassidy turned around and went into the Nexus.

* * *

In the Tal'darim Nexus, Cassidy took a deep breathe and reached for another injection of Terrazine. The gas quickly went into the girl's body, leaving purple veins on her skin. The girl took a deep breathe as she navigated through the both physical and mental pain. For a second she saw a man in front of her.

Brian.

Cassidy immediately felt overwhelming rage clouding her mind. The shame of defeat controlled her body. Without really thinking, she reached out with her right hand and focused on her PSI energy, and an area before her exploded.

The explosion created a loud bang that brought Cassidy out of the hallucination. She took a deep breathe and calmed her mind. Brian was not here. She had a hallucination from the Terrazine. Cassidy laid on the ground, flat on her back and exhausted. The pain was fading away, and she felt tired.

And then she went through what happened. She just used a mind blast, something she couldn't do.

Cassidy frowned. She immediately sat back up and did what she did before. Just like she expected, as she focused all her PSI energy on an area, the area suddenly exploded. Of course, her energy was drained after that, but the damage down was impressive. Judging from her experience, the mind blast could easily tear down a Viking if it connects properly.

The door of the Nexus opened, and a zeolet walked in. Cassidy could sense he was stronger than before, and rightfully so. After all, training under triple chrono boosts is simply effective. There's no way else to describe it.

"High lord." The zeolet bowed in submission. He was thinking fast. At first, when he finished meditating and injected a ton of Terrazine, he felt pure power running through his veins. For a second he felt invincible. Not even the high lord frighten him. He even considered the option of challenging Cassidy in a Rak'shir duel.

But he instantly changed his mind upon seeing Cassidy. His instinct tells him to not oppose Cassidy, for the girl before him can crush him with a single move. He is too weak. Just as he was enhancing, so was Cassidy.

"What?" Cassidy asked, not looking at the zeolet.

"The probes have completed a full survey of the planet. They have found 254 vespine geysers and...and 3 Terrazine geysers."

Cassidy looked up in surprise. 254 vespine geysers were not surprising. After all, vespine gas was of no use to the native people and were therefore left intact. But Terrazine geyser...The Terrazine she and the rest of the Tal'darim were using were work of the Tal'darim Nexus. But this required minerals. On the other hand, Terrazine geysers could endlessly produce Terrazine gas as they, unlike vespine geysers, will never be mined out.

Vespine geysers are places a number of vespine gas are present, while Terrazine geysers are located in places where the energy of the void are strong. This environment produced the star of the void energy, the Terrazine.

"In that case, order the probes to start harvesting vespine gas. Adjacent, how many probes are needed to fully saturate the vespine geysers and efficiently mine out the minerals on the planet?"

"3000."

"Then use all the minerals harvested to produced probes and send the new probes to work. Stop when you reach 3000 and notify me. Clear?"

"As you wish, high lord."

Cassidy stood up and walked out of the Nexus. The zeolet followed her.

Outside the Nexus was dozens of Tal'darim warriors. Most of them were zeolets, but there were three slayers. The zeolets were meditating and the slayers were walking around in boredom. One of them was firing at a rock from far away. The particle disruptor accurately dismantled the rock, and the slayer nodded in satisfaction.

Cassidy scanned the zeolets and the slayers. They were her best men and a force to be reckoned with. But they were just the start. She would not settle unless all her enemies were dead, and she stood, invincible and victorious, above their bodies.

"High lord, First ascendant." A zeolet bowed to Cassidy and the first zeolet created. The first zeolet was strong enough to become the first ascendant.

"I intend to re-establish the chain of ascension." Cassidy said openly. "As a reward, the High Lord will have direct control over fifty percent of the newly acquired Terrazine geyser. The First ascendant will receive twenty five percent, and the third will receive ten. I don't care what you do with you supplicants and your resources, but I demand you obey my orders. Any effort to challenge me..." She gripped her hands tight,"will result in your swift demise."

The zeolets bowed down in absolute obedience.

"High lord." Suddenly, the adjacent walked up. "One of the probes spotted something odd. It appears we are not the only one here."

Before Cassidy could say something, the First Ascendant roared. "Let me be your blade!"

Cassidy grinned. "You are my best warrior, and yet you are much weaker than me. I will go, and if I fall, then your presence will be of no help. Your job is to meditate. You are...too weak to serve me." She turned around and left. The location of the target is already on her personal computer.

The First ascendant cursed in shame. The zeolets didn't laugh at him, because they were lower in the chain of ascension. But the slayers did. Slayers are the loyal soldiers of the High Lord and didn't participate in the chain of ascension. They are therefore able to insult the ascendants, who are lower than the high lord. After all, it's not like the First Ascendant can kill a servant of the High Lord. That would be an insult to the High Lord and would be punishable by death.

Couldn't do anything to the slayers, the First Ascendant silently grabbed another injection of Terrazine...


	18. Threats (2K)

**This chapter's a bit later but foreshadows a lot of things in the future. The Terran will be the major player in the clone wars, which means they have to develop a government first.**

 **PS. Take a guess who's the "unexpected foe"...**

* * *

Above the planet of Korhal, a battle cruiser emerged out of warp space.

"Here we are." Brian said as he stood on the bridge. "Captain, lower the ship to the planet's surface. Do a planetary scan. I want a map on the entire planet, including information on the resources and potential enemy. Am I clear?"

"Yes sir." The captain turned around and passed down orders. The ship started to scan, and the result was delivered to Brian after a short period of time.

"Land the commanding centers here and here by the vespine geysers. Deploy an squad of marines here and here. Send out SCVs to mine minerals and vespine gas." Brian ordered as he went through the map and tapped a few places. After giving the order, he turned around and left the deck. Eight elite marines followed him.

* * *

The battlecruiser was not as enormous as a mothership that could serve as a city. Still, it was enough to act as a small Terran base of operation. A significant part of the ship was made into an armory. There, dozens of scientists work day and night to not only enhance the current weapons but also analyze the battles the Terran fought and develop new, more efficient means of destruction.

After all, technology is an essential part of strength. Take the Protoss, for example.

For the moment, the weapon experts were having a heated discussion.

"Judging from the battle of Naboo, I think we should enhance the ability of our marines. In that way, our marines can easily defeat the battle droids in combat with a shocking efficiency." A scientist said. He's in charge of infantry weapon and armor.

"That's stupid." Another scientist cut him off. "We need to spend our resources in building up a fleet. Winning a ground battle can't help if there's an entire droid fleet bombarding on your...marines. However, if we get a powerful fleet and overrun that of our enemy, we will have total domination of the battlefield." Needless to say, he's in charge of ships development.

"Sir?" Another scientist looked at a man at the top seat. The man had black hair and black pupils. He wore a casual suit and had a pair of glasses on him. He seemed trustworthy.

Jason was never a fan of being a foot soldier. He thought it was foolish for someone like him to pick up a rifle and charge at the enemies, hoping the blasts somehow miss him. Instead, he preferred taking his life into his own hands. That's why he took the position as the head of the research department. After all, being a scientist is not only the safest job in the entire Terran army but can also greatly effect the outcome of the battle.

Plus, he has a thing for science and engineering.

"According to reliable sources," Jason spoke with a quiet voice. He enjoyed the feeling of being significant as every scientist and engineer were listening to his opinion, completely focused."There will not be a major warfare within around twenty years, which means our focus will be on the development of infrastructures. Our resources must be spent on developing and creating a small fleet that can counter any potential danger."

The scientist nodded in obedience and left the table, leaving Jason alone. His black eyes twitched under the light.

* * *

Meanwhile, Brian walked into his chamber. The marines stopped outside the door, but he was not alone. A figure solidified beside him.

Saizo emerged from cloaking mode as the hexagon prisms that formed the personal cloaking field deactivated. A rifle was on his back, and a cylinder was attached to his belt. A mask covered his face.

"You need to be more careful in this suit." Brian said without looking. "One of the most powerful weapons of the ghosts is their ability to be discreet. If the other commanders acknowledge your presence, then your use will be limited."

"I don't understand." Saizo said. "Why don't we destroy all the other commanders? That will eliminate any potential threat. Three people that knows about the future is better than a dozen." He didn't understand why Brian gave the commanders a chance to be a threat. Instead of eliminating them, Brian promised them a fleet and thus the ability to threaten him.

"What are you talking about?" Brian acted surprised and innocent. "Do I look like someone that's so murderous? I only take a life when I have to, and I do everything for the greater good."

Saizo frowned. "Is that what you tell yourself, emperor? That you are a hero forced to make bad choices?" He would have been more subtle and obedient. After all, everything he did was for his own survival. He joined Brian because Brian had a higher chance of surviving. But what the emperor is doing is concerning him.

This is the man that plotted a betrayal that fooled one of the most intelligence human being he knew. This is the man that came on top in the political discussion with the Queen of Naboo. This is the man that sent out invisible operatives to those that supported him in fear that they would turn on him.

This is the man that crowned himself emperor in the name of peace.

"Perhaps. I don't know why you are so eager to be supported by the others," Saizo said slowly. "but no matter how nice and heroic you appear before everyone else, I know who you truly are and what you did. That's why I can never trust you."

"What are you trying to say?" Brian quickly frowned.

"I am just giving a warning."Saizo said plainly. "I am wiser than everyone else. If you try to back stab me like the time you did to Cass, I will not escape...I will end you." His right hand swiped, and a vibe sword appeared in his hand. It's a standard melee weapon for the ghosts. But Brian just stared at him.

"On the other hand, as long as you don't betray me, I will be your blade." Saizo concluded before cloaking and disappearing. Brian signed and did a special gesture, and a dozen ghosts lowered their C-10 rifles and left the room. They would've sniped Saizo if Brian didn't order them not to.

As the ghosts cleared, Brian was truly alone. The leader, the conspirator, took a deep sign.

As unlikely as it seems, he didn't want to execute Cass because he was afraid of her power. After all, her tactical mind made her useful to the development of Terran. Her part couldn't be substituted. But she was a Protoss. Yes, he knew the girl was not just PSI enabled but was of a different race. He also knew there's a battle coming up. The final battle. And if the Terran is still stuck fighting each other, then all hope are lost. Even so, he allowed Cass to live after her initial escape. He had charges planted in every vessel or vehicle in case they were compromised.

The darkness that consumed the original world is coming. It's emerging slowly but steadily. It might take a while to get here, but when it arrives, he will need to unite everyone to stop it.

That's why he created the Terran Dominion. That's why he did everything necessary to empower himself and strength his authority. That's why he banished Cass and monitored the others. That's why he created the bio chips.

There's a reason they are not only here but handed the gift. They're on a mission.

Brian turned around and made contact with the ship's captain. "Admiral, how are the expansions going?"

* * *

 _In a random room, a figure was laying on the bed. Two marines were guarding outside. But the commander was special._

 _He felt the ghost in his room. The man was cloaked, but he nonetheless knew about his presence. It's due to a gift...of making a deal with someone much much worse than the devil._

 _He had the power to crush the ghost with the movement of a finger. Literally. As a level 10 PSI individual he could shatter the battlecruiser without taking a single wound. But that's not ideal._

 _Even the Queen of Blades needed the Swarm to conquer galaxies. Without the Swarm she is just an individual who can by taken down by the Yamato cannons of a few battlecruisers. But with the Swarm, the Queen of Blades could tear down empires and slaughter armies. Fleets burn and worlds collide. It's all because she had the army._

 _And now he is in a similar situation._

 _Sure, as someone as powerful as he is, getting an army is not that hard. But he wanted a strong one. The Terran were not the ideal choice, but they were the best he could gain access to. That's why he didn't crush the commanders when he had the perfect chance to do so. He needed to hide his true intentions from everyone if he were to hand this galaxy to his master._

 _Luckily, no one knew about the upcoming darkness. The only one that might pose a threat to him has been banished. The current leader is someone who is better at backstabbing than anything else. He's got this..._

* * *

The battlecruiser sent out dozens of units to patrol the area. Reapers and Hellions used their advantage in speed to make a full scout of the planet that would be their home. Places like jungles and caves that those units couldn't get in were scanned by the battlecruiser.

As the planet was secured, a number of command centers floated out of the hanger of the battlecruiser and landed on the planet. SCVs marched out and started gathering resources. Some constructed bunkers, missile turrets, and sensor towers in critical locations. Dozens of supply depots were put up. Random marines were scattered all around.

A few hours later, the battlecruiser landed on Korhal. Barracks, factories, and starports floated onto Korhal. They would start producing units as soon as the resources were in place.

A few days later, the battlecruiser jumped to the moons of Korhal and a few other uninhabited planets close by and unloaded a number of units, majorly marines and SCVs. These units would be the outpost of the Terran dominion and the first line of defense against any potential danger. A command center and a couple barracks allowed the outposts to produce their small militia with the minerals gathered on the moon.

At the same time, a Hercules transport was loaded up and immediately entered Warp space. Its destination: Coruscant.

Just as the Terran were building up their civilization, across the galaxy, Cass was faced with an unexpected foe.


	19. Sith Temple (2K)

**I'm currently looking for some Beta Readers who's willing to preview my chapters a day before they are published and give a few advice. PM me if anyone's interested. Anyone's allowed, but I might not take all the ideas...**

* * *

The ground of Slayn was burning hot. The air was foggy. Energy of the darkness was unimaginably dense, and the entire environment gave off a negative vibe. This vibe happened to be exactly the reason Cassidy chose to establish her order here, out of countless planets in the galaxy. It's the best home world to the warlike society of the Tal'darim. She knew it the second she felt a distinct wave of energy of the void coming from somewhere, and after a while of travelling, she found herself to the ideal world of the Tal'darim.

But it appeared that there were another civilization that had a similar idea. The probes reported of a now destroyed civilization that once owned the planet. The demised world seemed to be powerful but were destroyed due to unknown causes.

However, one of the probes discovered an area that might contain a living creature. It was in a tall building, and the probe detected motion and sound within. The machine reported back to the adjacent, who informed Cassidy. Now, the High Lord is on the way to that location.

High stones were everywhere on the way there. Its surface was red due to the fog, but the existence of those stones confirmed the existence of a past civilization. As Cassidy walked closer and closer to the building, she felt a sense of darkness that grew stronger and stronger as she went closer and closer. She felt threatened, which only made her excited.

She's not afraid of a fight. In fact, the worst torture for her is to live in a world of peace and security for a lifetime. Walking along the edge of life and death is her version of entertainment.

Strangely, the probe that sent out the signal was nowhere to be seen. In fact, it was as if it disappeared off the face of Slayn. Cassidy's lips pressed tightly as she noticed countless small snakes suddenly appearing and assembling into a large, dark figure. Both the snakes and the figure were made up of dark side of the force.

"We are the Sith." The figure, which took the form of a serpent, stated. Serpent were known for their ability to use deception as a weapon and their cold blooded efficiency in hunting down the prey, just like the Sith Lords. This why the remain of the deceased Sith Lords took the shape of the animal.

"So this was the home world of the Sith Lords?" Cassidy said casually. It made sense. The Sith empire was eliminated by the Jedi and the republic.

The serpent appeared insulted by how cool Cassidy appeared. It was used to being looked upon by frightened eyes. Someone who's cool in his presence is disturbing. "Fear me!" It charged forward with a loud cry. Dark side of the force tried to grab on to Cass and corrupt both her mind and her body, but the High Lord merely focused her PSI energy on activating and maintaining her plasma shield. The shield, powered by her energy, formed an impenetrable barrier between Cass and the dark side.

After two seconds of struggling, the dark side backed off. It turned into ten figures that surrounded Cass. All of them wore cloak and a tall hat, and had their bodies composed of red gas. They realized they weren't strong enough to control Cass with the hard way, so it's time to try an alternate method.

"You have a darkness within you." One of the spirits lured. "You will make an excellent Sith Lord. You can have the power to take over and rule the galaxy. Enemies will bow before you. The republic will crumble. As long as you become my apprentice..." His voice came to a swift end as Cassidy mind blasted his form and destroyed it. The other ghosts made a sharp noise and disappeared.

Force ghosts were the remained conscious of deceased Sith Lords, and Cass just wiped the concious out.

Cassidy smiled at the ashes of the destroyed ghost. "I don't need someone who failed in combat to teach me how to win. You are no more than an image of what you were." She said. "If you were still the Sith Lords, I might retreat. But now that you are merely ghosts of the force, it is time for you to rest forever." She turned to the structure and continued.

The structure had a triangular opening in which Cassidy walked over. She walked past a stone hallway and found herself in a large room. Two giant stone statues were on the sides, as if they were standing guard. In the middle of the room was a giant statue facing the entrance and thus Cassidy.

Cassidy closed her eyes and scanned the surrounding with her PSI energy. To her, eyes can be deceived by hallucinations, cloaking, or even the lack of light, but PSI energy can't, especially for someone as powerful as she is. From the scan, she noticed a surge of energy, similar to the energy of the void in which she used by inhaling Terrazine, in a pit before the giant statue. The energy was not exactly void energy, but was filled with emotions, such as hate and excitement.

She silently drew her bane blade. Two sabers made up of red light lit up the surrounding.

The pit roared as a wave of darkness twitched and turned. Intensely, red particles rose above the pit and started to merge. The dots formed a creature that gave Cassidy the impression of someone wearing armor. It is another force ghost, just like the one she destroyed before the temple. But she did nothing to stop him. She wanted to know more about the creature and see what she can gain.

Cassidy stood aside and watched as the creature completed its transformation. He was a large man wearing a thick layer of red armor. Black mist formed his body. His eyes were glaring yellow. He moved around dramatically.

"Why do you come to my tomb, woman?" He asked in a loud voice, which was largely due to his size.

"I want to see what I can learn." Cassidy replied, "And when I'm done, I will destroy you." She was not being naughty, she was just stating a simple, established fact.

There's no way she can allow something like him to exist in her backyard.

"Destroy me?" The figure moved around Cassidy, as if intrigued. "Do you know who I am?"

"A failure who refused to accept his fate." Cassidy smirked. In the Tal'darim society, the price of defeat is death, whether it's an immediate death or dying for the High Lord on the battlefield is another question.

"I am Darth Bane, the ancient Sith Lord. I created the rule of two. I saved the Sith from self destruction. I am not a failure..." Darth Bane circled around, trying to make himself more frightening. "Do you not fear me?"

Cassidy grinned. "I am High Lord of the Tal'darim. You, on the other hand, are just an illusion. Your threat is as empty as your current form. And now that you have told me what I needed to know, you can perish now." Her eyes turned red, and Darth Bane was pushed back towards the tomb. He tried to resist, but he was just an illusion, a mere shadow of what he used to be.

Cursing, the Sith Lord did his best to make his foe suffer. "You are merely a puppet!" He shouted. "I can sense what's before you. Everything about you, your honor, your strength, they are no more than a joke!" He struggled to maintain his current form and search for even a scent of fear within Cassidy, but ended up failing. He grabbed on to the ground and tried to fight back against the void energy that came out of Cassidy, but it was futile.

"Free me, and I will tell you your future! I can help you prevent your chilling fate!" Darth Bane screamed as most of his body turned into a red mist. He's on borrowed time.

But Cassidy merely frowned and pushed him back into his tomb, destroying what's left of Bane's conscious. As soon as the ghost of Bane was forced back into his tomb, a piece of ground moved aside, revealing a staircase. Cassidy smirked and continued to go further into the temple. Her crimson blade revealing her path.

But deep down she felt something's off. All of the force ghosts mentioned how she was played and was a mere puppet. She assumed they were just lying and trying to get into her head, but that might not be the case...

Now she's really curious what she would see in the deeper part of the temple.

* * *

The stairs ended after minutes of travelling, and Cassidy found herself in a large platform. There, five yellow orbs made up of light floated into the air and transformed into five individuals. Unlike the Sith, they didn't wore armor.

Cassidy sensed a strong connection between them and the force. But this connection didn't grant them strength. In fact, they were even weaker than the Sith ghosts. They were not warriors. They were priestesses.

"I have seen what you did to the force ghosts outside, what do you wish to find?" The leading priestess asked. She was an elder who spent her lifetime studying the way of the force. But she had no experience in fighting. Normally that wouldn't be a problem because a. no one could find Korriban and b. No one can kill someone this closely connected to the Force.

But Cassidy just did both.

"There's something inside me. Something dark and powerful." Cassidy said quickly. "I want to know what it is. You can see it. I know you can."

"I can't." The priestess said. Cassidy bit her lips and drew her blade, and the priestess quickly continued before the Tal'darim could kill her. She's not afraid of death, but she's afraid of dying and leaving the Force unbalanced. She exists for a purpose. "I don't know what you are talking about, but I can show you what it might be. Behind this door," She motioned for a room behind her. "you will find yourself temporarily disregarding the concept of time. You will see what happens in the future..."

* * *

 **PS. The Sith temple on Korriban was a shelter for Force ghosts of the dead Sith Lords. They were relatively fragile, but their combination with the force allowed them to see more than the other, living things. In the clone wars series these force ghosts were controlled by the force priestesses to test Yoda, but the event would be dozens of years later. For now, the force ghosts were free from the control of anyone, which is why they were trying to lure Cass into freeing them.**

 **As Cass entered, the force ghosts saw the darkness with their connection to the force. However they didn't have a chance, or chose not to, warn Cass. They knew it would be a threat to Cass, and since Cass was terminating them, they would be glad to sit back and watch Cass die. Still, some of them tried to use this information to convince Cass to not kill them, which failed as Cass thought they were bluffing.**

 **It is in this temple that Cass first discovered their might be someone that's behind the curtain. Someone so powerful that she couldn't stop him alone...What will she see in the future?**

 **PPS. The Force is able to show the future...as shown in season 3 episode 17 of the clone wars.**


	20. The Future (2K)

_Cassidy regained conscious in an unfamiliar territory. The second she recovered, she looked down on her body. She was wearing something that resembled a Tal'darim armor. She wanted to look up or walk around, but she couldn't._

 _She is in the body of her future self, and she can't really do anything. She's just an observer._

 _Cassidy silently attached two Bane blades to her arms. She touched her braid, carefully, and slid her fingers down the armor. A door opened, and a Tal'darim walked in._

 _He had various decorations on his face, signifying his relatively high level in the chain of ascension._

 _"High Lord..."He said. "The battle of Korhal have ended. The remainder of the Terran fleet is crushed. All twelve Terran fleets, including the royal Phantom fleet, have been wiped out. The emperor of the Terran dominion committed suicide. The Terran are no more. The damage the Terran did to the Anubis Legion is minimal."_

 _"And the Swarm?" Cassidy asked without showing a single sense of grief. "The Queen of Blades had legions of zerg under her command. She is a level 12 PSI enabled."_

 _"The Queen of Blades...the Queen of Blades was defeated in a PSI duel. Anubis disabled and executed her. He now has control over the Terran and the Zerg fraction. We are the only ones left." The Tal'darim answered._

 _"And what's the condition of the Anubis Legion?"_

 _"The Anubis Legion lost half their ships, but are now reinforced by the remainder of the Swarm. Your plan of using the other commanders to weaken the enemies have backfired."_

 _"Are you criticizing my decision?" Cassidy asked, threateningly._

 _"Forgive me, my lord. But what do we do now?"_

 _"We do what our tradition demands." Cassidy said steadily as she stood up and ignited her blades. "We fight till the end."_

 _"It's futile."_

 _"It is." Cassidy said. "Nyon, Summon the Death Fleet. We march on Korhal." She walked out of the room and into the bridge of a Tal'darim mothership. Outside the ship were hundreds of vessels. Carriers, Destroyers, other Motherships... But Cassidy's heart only sank further and further. Whoever this Anubis Legion is, they represent an invincible force. Even the entire Death Fleet couldn't stand against them._

 _Even if she learned about the future, can she stop this from happening?_

* * *

 _"Today we face an invincible foe. One that have wiped out the Terran and the Zerg. One that have shattered the republic and consumed the Separatist. One that we can never, ever defeat." Cassidy said to every Tal'darim member through communication. "And yet we will not surrender. For we are the Tal'darim. For we are the Forged, and we will never be broken!"_

 _"Today, we stand tall against the inevitable! All units...Ahh!" She groaned as a crimson blade penetrated her chest from behind. She fell on the ground. The attack came from Nyon, the first ascendant._

 _The Tal'darim around were outraged. In merely seconds, five mind blasts hit Nyon, destroying his shield and severely wounding him. The air vibrated as three Blood Hunters severed Nyon's limbs. But the traitor was smiling._

 _"It doesn't matter..." He said in a weak voice due to him being weakened by the injuries. "I am one...with Death..." His body disappeared, as all dead Protoss do._

 _Cassidy groaned. She was wounded, heavily. The attack from Nyon somehow happened without her noticing and somehow penetrated her shield, which was extremely hardened by her PSI energy. She's weak, but she has no time to rest._

 _Nyon didn't act along. He had a plan, and that plan didn't include stopping at the last minute and allow her to heal._

 _The space before the Death Fleet rippled, and countless vessels appeared out of warp space. They were either Terran or Zerg. Hundreds of Terran battlecruisers started readying their Yamato cannons. Vikings threw themselves at the Protoss. Waves and waves of mutalisks moved their wings and charged forward. Dozens of Leviathans charged into the formation of the Death Fleet, knocking the ships over and penetrating them with their tentacles. Formations of corruptors followed the Leviathans and provided them with some backup._

 _"Fire all guns!" Cassidy ordered. The Tal'darim were shocked, but ultimately obeyed. Destroyers fired their beams of destruction at the Battlecruisers and Leviathans and then bounced to other, smaller units. The Purification Beams of the Motherships fired as well, turning flocks of mutalisks to ash and igniting dozens of Vikings with every hit. Carriers let loose their interceptors, but the small, mechanical attack droids were less effective when they were the ones outnumbered. Most of the interceptors got blown up within ten seconds of joining the battlefield._

 _The attacks of the Anubis Legion, whether they were laser batteries, torpedoes, parasite spores, glave wurms, or tentacles, landed on the Tal'darim ships and weakened their shield with every hit. As the battle carried on, the shields started to run out, and more and more vessels started to burst into flames. Some of the pilots were saved by emergency warping system. Others not so lucky._

 _An Yamato round came out of a battlecruiser and hit a destroyer. The plasma shield instantly disappeared, and the incredible kinetic energy tore the ship apart. The pilot was vaporized before he could warp away._

 _A flock of mutalisks charged toward a Carrier. The large capital ship launched a dozen interceptors. The droids fired laser beams, but the mutalisks didn't even dodge. Instead, they just continued and ran into the interceptors. As both died off, a Viking moved up and launched multiple rounds of torpedoes at the defenseless Carrier. The capital ship started blowing up. The pilot signed and warped away a second before the bridge blew up._

 _The victorious Viking had around three seconds to cheer before finding himself in the path of a purification beam. The fighter disappeared, but the beam was not aiming for him. The purification beam hit a Leviathan. The enormous creature twitched around in pain. One fourth of its body was turned to ashes. But Zerg units were designed to fight until the last breathe, and so the wounded Leviathan launched itself at the Mothership..._

 _"We've been overrun." An ascendant reported as more and more Tal'darim ships fell. Cassidy's flag ship was starting to take some hits on the shields. The mothership held up nicely, but just the fact that some enemy reached the ship is bad news. As the flag ship, Cassidy's ship was at the back of the Death Fleet._

 _"If only I wasn't so stupid." Cassidy ignored the ascendant and said quietly. "If I joined the Terran and the Zerg, this would have been way better. But no, I was more focused on backstabbing and manipulating my ally than defeating the real enemies at hand..."_

 _A Terran battlecruiser jumped into the space just beside Cassidy's capital ship and fired hundreds of torpedoes at the mothership. But instead of exploding, the rounds created a blue wave. One single wave only weakened the shield by a bit, but hundreds of torpedoes temporarily disabled the plasma shield of the ship. As soon as the shield was done, hundreds of drop pods were fired from the battlecruiser and smashed into the Mothership._

 _"My lord, they are sending out boarding parties." Another ascendant reported. A portion of the drop pods were destroyed by the Mothership, but some remained._

 _"Terminate them." Cassidy said quietly as she watched more and more vessels, her vessels, destroyed. Is that what Brian and Amy felt before they died?_

 _In a part of the Mothership, five elite marines jumped out of a drop pod. They were lucky to arrived their destination unharmed, but their luck seemed to have ran out. Three Tal'darim zeolets charged up and sliced them to pieces._

 _But not all drop pods were easily dealt with. A special forces ghost exited a drop pod and fired an EMP round and an ascendant and two zeolets. The shields of the three units, along with the PSI energy of the ascendant, were cleared. Four elite marines took the three Tal'darim done with two casualties._

 _Small skirmishes continued throughout the Mothership. The battlecruiser that made the daring jump was reduced back to tons of raw material, but more and more aircraft started to overrun the Death Fleet. Dozens of drop pods were launched towards the flag ship every minute. Some were shot down, but more reached the target and managed to unload a number of units._

 _Eventually, after what appeared like a decade to Cassidy, the rest of the Death Fleet had been terminated. The resistance on the rest of the mothership have halted. All that's left of the Tal'darim were those within the deck._

 _A marine put a charger on the sealed entrance. A few seconds later, an explosion opened a path into what's left of the resistance against Death._

 _A squad of elite marines charged inside. They weren't really thinking things through, because a psionic orb from one of the higher ranking ascendants harvested the marines like they were wheat in a field._

 _Unfortunately_ _, the marines were not the only ones outside. A figure walked in. He wore a casual t-shirt, which was extremely odd when everyone else were in armor and wearing helmets. But no one dared to underestimate him._

 _Because he is the one that took over the galaxy by defeating every single piece of opposition. Anyone and everyone that stood against him perished. He is the bringer of death. He is Anubis._

 _With shocking cooperation, all ten ascendants formed a mind blast and threw it at Anubis. But Anubis didn't even flinch, and the attacks seemingly never happened. But everyone knew that's not the case. The attacks occurred, but Anubis was just strong enough to deflect them without moving an inch._

 _"It is time for you to die." Anubis stated quietly. He was not taunting or insulting. Rather, he was just stating a simple, and yet unchangeable fact._

 _Following his words, a powerful psionic storm swept through the deck. Every Tal'darim in the room, except Cassidy, screamed as their bodies perished. Slayers flesh disappeared, as is the custom of a dead Protoss, leaving just its steel limbs. Ascendants and zeolets disappeared with only their armors left to prove they once existed._

 _Cassidy fell on the ground. She could feel her life being drained out of her. But she still had one thing keeping her going._

 _"Who...who are you?" She asked. Yes, for all the time and effort she spent opposing Anubis, she never knew who he truly was. She knew he was one of the Terran commanders, but she didn't know who._

 _It's not like something can change if she know who Anubis is, but she just wanted to know the name of the man that killed her._

 _It's the only thing she could do._

 _Anubis knelt down beside Cassidy. "I am..." He stabbed Cassidy in the heart and looked into her eyes. "a god." Cassidy closed her eyes, and her body started to fade away...and so did Cassidy's conscious._

* * *

"Ahhh." Cassidy opened her eyes and found herself back in the chamber. She touched her chest on the spot where Anubis stabbed her and found it was intact. Taking a deep breathe, she spent a while to go through what she just witnessed.

From what she saw, a powerful enemy would rise up in the future. This Anubis, presumably a Terran commander, would first take over a portion of the Terran army and start fighting Brian. At that time he was relatively weak and vulnerable, but Cassidy, she, refused to attack and terminate him for some reason. Knowing that it's herself that made the decision, Cassidy easily realized her future self was trying to use Anubis to keep Brian busy and prevent the Terran from being unified.

Unfortunately, things went out of hand as Anubis got more and more powerful and eventually defeated Brian and took over the entire Terran fleet. That's when Cassidy realized something's deviating from her plan. Still, she came up with a backup plan, which was basically sit back while Anubis attacks the other fractions, like the Zerg. Even if Anubis defeated Amy and the Zerg, his force would been weakened to a stage that the Tal'darim can defeat him. Once he's done, the Tal'darim can have free reign over the galaxy. If his fleet's gone, Anubis's personal power will no longer matter. Level 13 PSI level or not, a single Mothership can burn him to ashes.

However, instead of spending his fleet in a war with the Swarm, Anubis tried something else. He, somehow, challenged Amy in a fight over the control of the Swarm. The worse part is he won, which allowed him control over both the Zerg fleet and the Terran fleet. That was when Cassidy knew she made a mistake, but it was too late.

Outnumbered, Cassidy made her last attempt. She assembled the Death Fleet and tried to find an opening to defeat Anubis. However, a traitor, Nyon, gave out the coordinates of the Death Fleet to Anubis and attempted to assassinate her. Even though he failed, the combined force of the Terran and the Zerg overran and wiped out the Tal'darim. She lost the war and her life.

But now she's different. Cassidy thought as she stood up and left the Sith temple. She knew what would happen, and she wanted to make a change.

* * *

 **I'm starting to think I'm better at writing battles than anything else. What do you think?**


	21. Senator Mason (2K)

Coruscant, the capital planet of the galactic republic, was the center of the galaxy. This is the planet where most of the actions occur. Tens of thousands of ships which belonged to hundreds of people, human and alien, the rich and the poor, politicians and merchants, fly by the sky of Coruscant everyday.

But among the ships, one of them was odd. Its style was never seen before in the market. It was a grey shuttle that had a dozen drop pods at the bottom to launch personal upon danger. It was more like a military transport than a civilian use ship.

"Senator Mason, huh?" Two Terran commanders were aboard the Hercules transport, one man and one woman. A dozen elite marines acted as the security. "I've got no idea why you chose this job. The Senate is not somewhere I want to work at." The woman said.

"Then why are you acting as my security? I'm sure captain Leon here can protect me." The man said. Captain Leon was the leader of the squad of the elite marine that protected Mason. "You can oversee the construction of your fleet back on Korhal rather than get into this mess known as politics with me. Violet."

"First, I am not getting into politics. You are. I am just watching over you." Violet replied as she shrugged. "Plus, I will have to make sure Palp doesn't do anything to you. You are playing with fire here by dealing politics with a Sith Lord." She neglected to mention the true reason she's here.

Anakin Skywalker.

"Sir, we are near landing." The Hercules stopped at a dock that belonged to the Senate. Mason took a deep breathe before walking out. Violet shrugged and followed him. Outside, someone was already waiting for Mason.

Ten Senate guards formed two lines. They carried a long blaster that acted more as a symbol of strength of the republic than as a weapon meant to kill. Their helmet and armor were blue. A T shaped opening was at the front of the helmets. A specially modified armored plate that can deflect blaster fires was at the shoulder of each guard. Palpatine himself was standing between the senate guards. He walked up the second Mason came down.

"Chancellor Palpatine." Mason smiled warmly as he shook hand with Palpatine. The chancellor seemed like a nice elder, but Mason knew what he is capable of.

"Senator Mason. Emperor Veleem informed me of your duty as senator of the Terran dominion. As far as I know, you will be acting as the representative of the Terran dominion in the senate, yes?" Veleem is the last name of Brian.

"Precisely." Mason replied. "This is Violet, the head of my security forces. I trust her with my life." Palpatine smiled and shook Violet's hand. Violet shook and quickly pulled back, slightly surprised by how Mason introduced her.

"Let's enter the Senate. Allow me to give you a tour of the senate." Palpatine invited.

As the commander chosen to represent the Terran dominion in the republican senate, Mason had his strengths. He might not be the best fighter, like Victor and Amy, nor the best commander, like Cass and Brian, but he had the mind of a politician. Out of all the commanders available, Mason was one of the few that Brian believed could outsmart Palpatine. Cass was one, but she diverged. Brian himself was another, but he's the emperor...

This is how Mason quickly understood the current situation. To Palpatine, the Terran dominion is a unified planet with a powerful military. They have advance technology and a powerful army. Their only weakness is a lack of fleet, which means if he wanted to be their enemy, now is the best opportunity to strike. But doing something now can be critical to his plan to overthrow the Jedi. This means he can't put the Terran down before they become a threat. In that case, Palpatine did what he does best. Play nice.

Palpatine pretended to be a kind gentlemen who's only interest is in the best of the republic. In that way, he can gain the friendship of the Terran, which will make betraying them much easier. But before that, he needed to play his part well. Thus came the invitation.

Unknown to Palpatine, Mason came with a similar purpose.

"Of course." Mason replied with another smile. "It will be my honor."

* * *

As Mason and Palpatine were exchanging praises in the Senate, Violet left for the Jedi temple.

It wasn't that hard to find the Jedi temple. But entering the Jedi temple was another matter. That's a fact Violet learned as she saw two Jedi wearing white masks guarding the gate.

Jedi temple guards.

"I am here to see master Kenobi." She said as she lifted her hands to show she came in peace. The temple guards exchanged a confused look. The Jedi lived in a relatively isolated environment. Most Jedi were brought to the temple since they were kids and stayed in the temple for training. Most of them didn't have a chance, or didn't want to, make friends with ordinary people.

Plus, Jedi didn't really have a great reputation in the outside world. More feared than admired, the Jedi didn't really made any contact with the outside world. The normal people were afraid of the power of the Jedi on them, and the mysterious setting of the Jedi, with all the cloaks and stuff, was not helping. One of them nodded and turned around and walked back to the temple. The other one stayed but lowered his double edged light saber.

A while later, two figures were running out of the Jedi temple. One of them was larger and older while the other was way younger.

"Obi-Wan, Anakin." Violet smiled as she knelt down and hugged Anakin. She turned to Kenobi. "I'm sorry for your loss."

During the battle of Naboo, despite the Terran influence, master Qui-Gon Jinn still died at the hand of Darth Maul. Violet tried to save him, but Cassidy deemed it an unnecessary risk and stopped her. She never got over it.

Kenobi signed. "I've gotten over it. But in order to honor my master, I am willing to accept Anakin as my padawan." He patted Anakin. "Come with me. I'll give you a tour of the temple."

The Jedi temple is mainly for Jedi, but there's no strict rule. As long as you're proven as someone not hostile, you can come and go as you please. But this is just another proof of how soft the Jedi have became after the destruction of the Sith. At least Violet knew the Terran base on Korhal was under strict restriction, and just landing on Korhal is not as easy thing.

As the trio was walking down the hall, Violet noticed Anakin being a little depressed. His hands were gripping tightly and his eyes were a bit red. But she didn't do anything.

"What brings you to Coruscant?" Kenobi asked.

"We have re-established our government on a planet called Korhal. I am the head of security of the senator, senator Mason, that is here at Coruscant to represent the Terran Dominion in the republic. I will be here for a while." She noticed how Anakin appeared excited after she said she'd be here for a while.

"Happy to hear that." Kenobi replied. "The Jedi council have been informed of the heroic act you and your people did on Naboo, and I'm sure they will welcome you as a guest. You can stay here as long as you want."

"Express my gratitude to the council." Violet replied.

Kenobi smiled. "I will."

* * *

A few hours later, Violet wondered into Anakin's room. The setting was simple, especially for a ten year old boy. There were no posters or anything like that. Instead, the room was so clean Violet would've called it empty. The Jedi, even younglings, weren't supposed to be living in luxury. Supposedly, it made them easier to turn to the dark side.

Violet found it ridiculous.

Anakin was sitting on his bed when Violet entered. He immediately stood up when Violet walked in. The two have became friends on Naboo, and Violet have protected Anakin for multiple times.

"Ani." Violet whispered as she knelt down. "How's your training going? You appear...sad." She was hesitant.

"I know Jedi are not supposed to show emotion." Anakin said. "But I am worried. I am worried about mother. She's still on Tatooine in the hands of Watto. Watto's a shop owner on Tatooine." Anakin explained. "When I left Tatooine mother told me to forget about her, but I...I can't."

"I'm sure she's safe." Violet tried to calm Anakin down. She's telling the truth. Anakin's mother will stay alive for at least ten years.

"I..I don't know." Anakin said with haunted eyes. "I just had a dream. In my dream, mother was killed by someone wielding a red blade...like the one that killed master Jinn. A Sith."

Violet frowned. The death of Anakin's mother was one of the factors that turned Anakin to the dark side, but that wasn't until a decade later. This is not supposed to happen. "Did you tell Kenobi about this?"

"I did...but Obi-Wan told me to forget about her. He said I need to break my ties if I am to become a Jedi. But I can't...does that mean I can't be a Jedi?" He stared at Violet in fear.

Violet's heart softened. No matter what the boy will become one day, he is merely a boy who's facing an impossible dilemma. In the original story line Anakin didn't do anything to help his mother because Jedi weren't supposed to be emotional. When he finally did, he found his mother dying. He slaughtered the Tusken Raiders that led to his mother's demise, and that was when he first gave into the dark side. She's hate to think what Anakin might become if he knew his mother died when as a child.

Fortunately, the presence of Violet presented Anakin with a mean of saving his mother and obey the Jedi code.

"I will save your mother and get her to somewhere safe." Violet said carefully. "But you need to forget about her and keep going. You are going to be an excellent Jedi. I am sure." Anakin nodded and hugged Violet. Violet patted Anakin on the head before turning around and leaving the room.

On the way out of the Jedi temple, Violet tapped an earpiece. "Adjacent, get me captain Edgar of the Violet fleet."

"Commander?"

"Captain Edgar." Violet said to the captain of her flag ship, the Spine. The Spine was a Gorgon battlecruiser designed to act as the flag ship of a fleet. It had triple the firepower of a normal battlecruiser, four times the armor, and a series of other tricks. Its size was four times that of a normal battlecruiser. It's a killing machine from top to bottom with enough firepower to threaten the fleet of the Trade Federation that blockaded Naboo. Brian ordered the construction of five Gorgon battlecruisers since the creation of the Terran dominion. One of them was given to Violet. "Is the Spine ready for battle?"

"The Spine is only carrying six hundred marines and three squadrons of Vikings. Only two liberators are in place. Where is the target, may I ask?"

"I am not sure there might be a war." Violet said as she left the Jedi temple and boarded what seemed like a flying car. "But the Hutts are not the nicest of all. Jump the Spine near Tatooine, and sent a Hercules to pick me up."

"I thought you were planning to stay on Coruscant for a while. And, with all due respect, I don't think the emperor will be too happy about invading the Hutt space." Edgar frowned.

"He will agree. Just get the ship to Tatooine. I will talk to him." Violet said as she ended the call. Something's wrong. She thought she would be able to stop the darkness from rising to power with the knowledge of the plot. Apparently she was wrong.


	22. Fog of War (2K)

**Just for fun, I'll upload an extra chapter when I get forty favorites...**

* * *

A lot were going through Cassidy's mind as she walked back to the Tal'darim base. The vision of the Apocalypse that would happen in the future truly scared her. Trapped, backstabbed, and slaughtered is not the way she wanted to die, if she was to die at all. That's why she would do anything to prevent what she envisioned from happening.

According to the vision, Anubis was first a Terran commander. She would do something and put him down before he had an army to back him up, but she's got no idea who Anubis is. Plus, even if she knew who to target, she couldn't just break past the Terran commanders and kill one of them without any solid.

Later Anubis would rise and take over the entire Terran Dominion before defeating Amy and take over her swarm. In the original timeline she did nothing to stop him. She was wrong in doing so and paid a price. But now, if she knew of something or someone that's taking over now, she'd stop and kill him or her. But that's not something she could gain access to now. She'd have to be patience, but she wanted to do something.

Another thing to be noted is that neither the republic nor the empire showed up in the Apocalypse. Two possibilities: Either the republic/empire was wiped out by the Anubis Legion, or they were comprised. Perhaps Palpatine found Anubis to be a dear associate, but Cassidy doubted it.

Anyhow, Cassidy knew she had to do something to either weaken the enemy or strengthen herself. She couldn't weaken the enemy if she doesn't know who the enemy is. So she had to strength herself.

Cassidy walked into the Tal'darim base, which was fortified by a dozen photon cannons. Two zeolets at the front of the base were surprised to see Cassidy returning.

"High Lord? You're still alive?" One of them asked as both knelt down. "You were gone for two days. First Ascendant Nyon claimed you were dead."

"Is that so?" Cassidy frowned before realizing something. "Wait..wait. Did you say Nyon?"

Nyon was the First Ascendant when Anubis Legion struck. He stabbed Cass in the back and disabled her before being executed. He was working for Anubis.

Without waiting for an answer, Cassidy walked by the two zeolets and into the camp. There, a zeolet was standing tall. A number of Tal'darim were standing around and formed a circle. There were around eighty zeolets and thirty stalkers. A Stargate and a Robotics Facility were up, but no unit was produced out of them.

"The High Lord was weak!" Nyon roared as he waved his red bane blade. "The adjacent told me she was presumed dead! She's not fit to rule the Tal'darim! Now, I, Nyon, as the First Ascendant, shall..." He was cut off as Cassidy walked by the other Tal'darim and into the circle.

"You shall bow under me and beg for mercy." The High Lord said, drawing her blades. "If you wanted to ascendant, challenge me in a Rak'Shir duel. Don't try to go the easy way."

"High Lord, you are alive?" Nyon appeared surprised. "I..I only wanted to be High Lord because adjacent told me you were dead. I never meant to..."

"Doesn't matter." Cassidy said as she stepped forward with her blade lit and her eyes furious, ready for battle. Even if Nyon didn't try to be the High Lord, she would still kill him. She knew he would one day betray her. In fact, she literally felt his blade going through her body. Nyon has to die.

"This is not how the Rak'Shir works! Someone from the upper level can't challenge someone below!" Nyon shouted desperately. He knew he was no match for Cass.

"This is not a duel, this is an execution of the traitor." Cassidy whispered, coldhearted and ignoring Nyon's protest.

"In that case..." Nyon said, a scent of frenzy in his eyes. "I challenge you to a Rak'Shir duel! Who vows to stand by me?"

There was a period of awkward silence as the dozens of Tal'darim exchanged looks. Even though Cassidy had been gone for a while, she was still the High Lord of the Tal'darim, and those of the lower caste stood by and obeyed her. That's why it's insanely difficult to defeat a High Lord in a Rak'Shir duel. Every Tal'darim unit technically fights for the High Lord, so the best chance to defeat the High Lord in a duel is by either gaining support from someone outside the Tal'darim society or challenge the High Lord after he was weakened by a wound or something else.

Cassidy smirked and charged forward. Her double bane blades slashed down from the top with an intention to slice her opponent in two. Nyon lifted his blade and blocked the attack. But Cassidy lifted her knee, and the sharp metal blade that acted as armor became a weapon as the High Lord knee bumped the zeolet in the stomach. His plasma shield protected him from being pierced, but the First Ascendant was pushed back.

Despite surviving the first exchange, Nyon knew he was dead. Rak'Shir duel allowed the intervention of the supporters of a participate, which means it is completely fine for Cassidy to order the zeolets and the stalkers to kill him. He wouldn't last a minute if he were surrounded.

Cassidy, in contrary, smiled. She hadn't been in too much real combat since she learned a few skills from the Terrazine. Now might be the prefect time to use all these skills. The High Lord silently formed a Mind Blast between her right palms...

* * *

A Tal'darim was heavily smashed onto the ground and brought a wave of red dust into the air. His arms were severed, as was his left leg. Psionic energy started to fade away through those wounds. But he was still alive, barely.

Cassidy smiled at the effect she had on his opponent, and the Tal'darim that obeyed her. A show of strength was necessary to kept her subjects in check and her position stable. She would kill Nyon just for betraying her, but that would be a waste of resource. A Tal'darim, even maimed, can be helpful.

"Make him into a Vanguard so he can redeem his defeat." She said coldly as two zeolets walked up and dragged the severely injured ascendant into the robotics facility. "Now the place of the First Ascendant is open. Who was the Second Ascendant?"

"I am." A female zeolet walked up. "I am Arialla, Second Ascendant."

"Well, you are now the First Ascendant." Cassidy said. "Obey me, and you'll only have to worry about the lower ranks. Betray me..." She trailed off and entered the Nexus. Arialla kept her head low the entire time.

Cassidy entered the Nexus and was met with a scared adjacent. However, she didn't harm the adjacent. She has more important things to do. "How many resource do we have?"

"We have 31242 minerals and 17538 gas." The adjacent said.

"Construct a Destroyer." Cassidy ordered.

"My lord, that's not the ideal strategy. We don't even have a high templer to pilot the ship..." He trailed off as Cassidy glared at him in a warning way. He realized he should be lucky to be alive. "As you wish, my lord."

Cassidy turned and grabbed a bottle of Terrazine before walking to her own chamber. She sat down and opened the lid of the bottle and slowly inhaled the Terrazine. The slight increase of strength gave her a little more confidence, and allowed her to calmly consider her options.

The pain Terrazine brought made her think much faster.

She knew she could only strengthen herself. But simply developing the power of Tal'darim wasn't enough. She had to go to the outside world and find allies. Powerful allies that can stand by her when the darkness engulfs the world. That's why she ordered the creation of the destroyer. She needed a mean of transportation through the stars. The ship that she came here with was out of fuel.

The Jedi were first thrown out of consideration. They wouldn't be the best partner of the Tal'darim as their ways were vastly different. In fact, the trickery and ruthlessness of the Tal'darim were more like the Sith...That's it.

Cassidy slammed her fists together, and the air vibrated from the effect. The empire would be a perfect ally. Anubis intended to take over the world, and so did Palpatine, which means they couldn't be friends. Plus, the empire had a powerful military as it was the predecessor of the Galactic republic, which had been at war for decades. The empire would be a force to be reckoned with. If she can somehow convince Palpatine to form an alliance with her, and then act swiftly, she would be able to end Anubis before he becomes unstoppable.

But then Cassidy realized the down sides of Palpatine. It's too unsafe. Palpatine is now a Sith Lord and the leader of the ruling power of the galaxy. He has a ton of power in control. She is a High Lord who could barely afford a ship. If Palpatine knew of her existence and the presence of the Tal'darim, he would easily kill her and take over her forces rather than work with her. A lion can never befriend a mouse. Cooperation is based on two equal power with a similar need. This is not the case...for now.

Of course, she could go to Palpatine when she became powerful enough, but she had no idea when Anubis would rise to power. If he became stronger before the alliance could be made, then she'd be doomed.

Aside from Palpatine, there are a few other ways to be ally with the empire. One way is to make contact with the leader of the empire's fleet and the one below Palpatine himself. Darth Vader.

Darth Vader is better for several reasons. For one thing, he's much more vulnerable and less tricky than Palpatine, which means he can be more easily manipulated. Second, Darth Vadar, or rather Anakin Skywalker, was a Jedi before he turned to the dark side. This means he has a say in the Jedi council, and, when the clone war starts, he will have a fleet under his control. If she has control over him, she can manipulate the entire republic to fight Anubis if it is necessary. Third, and most importantly, Anakin has a lot of soft spots and provides Cassidy with a series of ways to control him, which is not even close to true for Palpatine.

Cassidy have noticed one of the weak spots.

Darth Vader, or rather Anakin Skywalker, has a deep love for his mother. He literally slaughtered an entire camp of raiders, against the Jedi code, after his mother died. If Cassidy can somehow get hold of his mother...then he would do anything and everything to save her. He would not hesitate to side with her against Anubis.

It's not the nicest way, but it's the most reliable.

True, Anakin will try to kill her whenever he has a chance, but he will play his part before that. That's all Cassidy needs.

"Adjacent, inform me when the destroyer is out."

* * *

The Destroyer was 700 meters in length and 300 meters in height. It had a built in warp drive that allowed it to enter warp space and travel extremely quickly. It had a destruction beam that could attack multiple targets and is powered by the bloodshard crystals. Its weapon gains more and more power as it continues to fire. Its plasma shield, powered by the PSI energy of the pilot, is as strong as the pilot.

Cassidy jumped into the destroyer. "You know what to do." She ordered Arialla, who was left in charge of the development of the planet. "...or what not to do." She lifted the destroyer and entered warp space.

Arialla stared at the point where Cassidy's ship disappeared. Behind her, two blood hunters lurked in the void...

Meanwhile, Cassidy laid back and watched the destination thoughtfully.

Tatooine...


	23. Collision (2K)

**I was planning to keep this chapter until next Saturday but it appears like there are already 40 favorites...**

 ** _Here's something new I'm trying:_**

 _Previously on The Craft among the Stars..._

 _"I will save your mother and get her to somewhere safe."_

 _"Just get the ship to Tatooine."_

 _Meanwhile, Cassidy laid back and watched the destination thoughtfully._

 _Tatooine..._

* * *

In the space of Tatooine, a large vessel suddenly exited warp space. Its thick armor complimented its large amount of guns. The Terran Gorgon class battlecruiser first showed itself in the world of Star Wars.

On the deck of the ship, Violet was having a stressful conversation with her superior. Her emperor.

"Violet, I heard report you've taken your flagship to Tatooine. Care to explain why?" Brian Veleem asked patiently. He knew Violet did what she did for a purpose.

"While I was on Coruscant, I met Anakin Skywalker..." Violet briefly explained what she heard and saw. "I promised Anakin I would protect his mother. In the original story, the death of Anakin's mother is one reason he turned to the dark side. Saving his mother from death can effective relieve that process."

"The vision Anakin saw...was that the same vision that drew Anakin back to Tatooine in Attack of the Clones?" Brian asked.

Violet thought for a while. "Perhaps. But it was decades earlier than the time Anakin's mother is supposed to die. Something's wrong. But then again that's why I brought The Spine. It's able to handle most situations." Violet said confidently.

Brian thought about it for a while as he gently tapped his chin. "Tatooine is the territory of the Hutts. The Hutts are not known for their understanding of others. I doubt they will be happy about a warship entering their area without any warning or agreement. You should've informed me earlier, and then I will have the time to make an agreement with the Hutts so we wouldn't risk starting a war."

"I didn't have the time." Violet explained. "Anyways, I am not stupid enough to use my battlecruiser to invade Tatooine. I will lead a squad of special operatives down to the planet, grab Anakin's mother, and then get out of there. If everything goes according to the plan, there will be no collision with the Hutts."

"And if things don't go like you planned? What happens if the Sith in the illusion suddenly appeared and attacked you?" Brian pushed. He didn't want to rely on luck.

"Then I will order the intervention of my ship and use orbital strikes to achieve my goal." Violet said quietly. "My target can not die. I made a promise."

Beside her, a ghost walked up. "Commander, team Omega is ready for combat." Violet nodded to Brian and closed the communication.

Brian frowned. He didn't like what Violet was about to do, but he supported her nonetheless. "Adjacent, get me Captain Ferdinand of the Phantom fleet..."

* * *

As a special ops unit, ghosts are extremely powerful under correct circumstances. Their cloaking ability allows them to move around undetected and sabotage and assassinate key targets. Besides from the basic C-10 canister rifle, they are also equipped with a series of weapons, including EMP rounds and lock down rounds. EMP rounds can disable psychic enemies and clear the shields and energy of the target. Lock Down rounds can paralyze a mechanical unit for a short period of time. They can also fire a Psi powered round that accurately lands in the most vulnerable spot of the enemy can, under most circumstances, snipes it. Ghosts wore hostile environment suits.

A unit of such power was massively produced during the rise of the Terran Dominion. Emperor Veleem had a secret group of special forces ghosts to his command. They were his blade against divergent. Each fleet also had a squadron of ghosts aboard their flag ship for special covert missions.

Violet entered a dropship, which held another ten ghosts. All of them were fully equipped. "When we land on Tatooine, enter cloaking mode. How long can you cloak?"

"We are fully charged and can maintain 6 hours of cloaking."

"That will be enough. Captain Edgar have already done a planet scan and have located the place our target is in. When we land, cloak and follow me. Beware of potential hostiles."

"Yes ma'am!" The ghosts replied. Violet closed her eyes as the drop ship lifted into the air and exited the battlecruiser. She has a bad feeling about this...

* * *

On the other end of Tatooine, a crimson vessel exited warp space. A busy traffic was landing on and leaving off the sand planet, but the High Lord hid out of sight. A Tal'darim destroyer is not exactly the most covert vessel, and she needed to come and go without attracting the attention of half the planet.

An hour later, Cassidy stood at the bridge of a half destroyed cargo ship. A trail of dead security guards was beside her. Warping the destroyer into her pocket dimension, she piloted the ship toward Tatooine after snapping the neck of the owner of the ship.

For the purpose of being discreet, Cassidy landed her ship in an unguarded, underpopulated desert. Leaving the ship, she walked past the dessert and towards the city that Anakin's former owner, Watto. The shop owner should still own Anakin's mother. That would be rather unfortunate of him.

The one problem is she didn't have any transport, and going through a desert by foot is just inefficient. Luckily, a group of Tusken raiders saw her ship and thought it was just some stupid cargo owner and wanted to earn a few extra bucks.

"Thank you very much." Cassidy said as she deflected a red blast with her shield and beheaded the last Tusken raider. She left the dead bodies in the sand and mounted one of the transports and drove away.

* * *

Just minutes after Cassidy left, a dropship landed on an area not far from the cargo ship. The ghosts immediately cloaked and fanned out to make sure there were nothing that can threaten their commander. Violet didn't wore any armor due to covert needs, so a single blast can kill her.

"Stay here and keep the comm open. It's unlikely we need a hot pickup, but it's possible." Violet ordered the pilot, who obeyed. The ghost gave the signal that the scene is safe, and she left the ship.

"Ma'am." Just as she left the ship, one of the ghosts spoke to her. "We found the bodies of four Tusken Raiders beside a cargo ship.

Violet frowned. A group of dead Tusken Raiders the same time Anakin's mother might die. This can't be a coincidence. "What's in the cargo ship?"

"The dead bodies of a dozen security guards." A ghost reported. Violet walked into the ship. On the ground were severed bodies of man. All of them were killed by a single strike of some melee weapon, just like the Tusken Raiders outside.

"Ma'am. It seemed like some took over this ship and executed everyone on board." A ghost deduced. Every ghost was trained to examine the battlefield condition in the ghost academy. Plus, their psychic ability made their minds way faster. "He landed the ship in the dessert but was attacked by four Tusken Raiders. He killed them all and took one of their vehicles. There were four bodies and three speeders outside."

"Who might he be? A Sith? But why would Palpatine send one of his minions to take down Anakin's mother?" Violet frowned.

"With all due respect commander." A ghost interrupted. "Our priority should be to protect and extract our target. If the assassin is already there, then there's more reason we need to double time."

"You're right." Violet said. She left the ship and returned to the drop ship. "If the assassin is here already then we need to be speed up. Get on the drop ship. Pilot, get us to our destination directly. We don't have time to be secret."

* * *

Most of Tatooine was covered by sand and held little population, but there were settlements in which people of all races thrived. There, merchants sold products to all kinds of customers. Pilots who needed some spare parts were given a terrible deal. Raiders could sell the loot they don't need for currency with little threat of being arrested. Mos Espa is one of these settlements.

Cassidy casually walked down the dusty streets. There were no concrete ground, nor was there anyone to clean the environment. Dust was kicked into the air with every stride of Cassidy's scarlet, metal shoes. She attracted some attention due to her red armor plating, and she noticed someone gripping to their blasters, but she didn't care. A few mercenaries in the settlement don't threaten her.

A shop was just around the corner. Spare parts were lying all around. A woman was kneeling down in the shop, working.

"Shmi Skywalker?" Cassidy asked as she walked up.

"...Yes?" The woman straightened up.

"I am a friend of your son, Anakin Skywalker." Cassidy decided to play nice. She doesn't want to be forced to knock Shmi out in front of everyone and carry her all the way back to her ship. It's stupid if she can deceive Shmi and make her walk herself. It's not like someone's here to stop her, right?

Meanwhile, the Terran special ops drop ship lowered its altitude. As the ship went lower and lower, the pilot saw the Tal'darim High Lord.

Everyone, friend or foe, the Terran encountered where uploaded into their database for the Terran units to study. The pilot immediately knew who Cassidy was, and he loyalty reported it to his commander.

"Cassidy?" Violet growled when she heard the news. She have had some interaction with Cassidy back on Naboo before she was forced to escape the planet. The girl's cold blooded nature and her willingness to do whatever is needed to win made her shudder. The image of her ordering the Banshees to bombard Terran and droids alike was stuck in her head.

But at the same time she was also angry at Cassidy for her total disregard of human lives, whether Terran or native of the Star Wars universe. That's why she collaborated with Brian to try to terminate Cassidy.

Brian failed, but she may have the chance to bring an end to the monster. After all, she has ten ghosts and the element of surprise.

"Get the ship down quietly." She ordered as she took out a A-230 Gauss pistol. "All ghosts get into cloaking mode. Fire two EMP rounds and eight Psi enabled rounds at her at my signal."

"Are you a Jedi?" Shmi asked curiously. The last time she saw her son was a while ago when two Jedi took her son away. But why would someone come and find her now? "Did something happen with Anakin? Wait...How can you prove that you are a Jedi?" She took a step back cautiously.

"Here.."Cassidy whispered as she positioned her body to cover what would appear. "Let me show you." She ignited her bane blade in the air. The crimson blade was neither the color nor the style of a Jedi light saber, but a slave woman couldn't tell the difference.

But what Cassidy did to fake her identity was misread by Violet. Taking into consideration the dream Anakin had, she immediately assumed Cassidy was going to kill Shmi. It's not her fault. In her mind it is totally possible for Cassidy to kill some woman without any reason. And she intended to stop her.

"Now!" She whispered. At almost the exact same time, two EMP rounds and eight Snipes moved toward Cass...

The way an EMP round works is it is capable of clearing the energy and the shield of most units after it explodes. At the same time the rounds left the gun barrel, Cassidy sensed the projectiles.

Two EMP rounds would've being able to disable her...but she's change. Back on Slayn, Cass spent days of outside time in a Nexus under the effect of dozens of chrono boost, which means it was actually months for the girl. There, she practiced the art of Psionic energy with all her focus and with the help of Terrazine. Her improvement was incredible as it made her as power as most ascendants.

It takes more than two EMP rounds to disable her.

Cassidy raised her hand up, and the two EMP rounds changed their direction and fled to the side. The following explosion of electromagnetic pulse also missed her. But her threat was far from over. Eight more Psionic rounds flew for her head and her heart.

The first round was stopped in thin air, and so was the second. But the amount of energy needed to completely halt the Psionic energy powered bullet was too great. Cassidy quickly changed her method as she deflected the rounds to the side, which was much easier to accomplish.

"Uh." Cassidy suddenly groaned as another EMP round exploded beside her. This time she was in range of the pulse. Weakened, she immediately jumped into Watto's shop. The ghosts stopped firing to avoid hitting Shmi by accident.

"Engage the enemy." Violet ordered. "Execute Cassidy at all cost, but don't harm our target. And...try to be quick. The natives are getting restless."

"Go!" A ghost said as eight ghosts entered the shop while two stayed behind to protect Violet.


	24. Notice

_It appears like most people like my story because of the Starcraft part rather than the Star Wars part. Plus, I myself an much more familiar with Starcraft than I am with Star Wars. That's why I am considering writing a story solely on Starcraft rather than doing a Crossover. This chapter(the first chapter of my new story) is a testing chapter to see which one readers like more. Review on your opinions. Your opinions will decide what story I go on with._


	25. In response to a review

Just for a clarification, I am not stopping the my crossover. I am just uploading my chapters on Saturdays so I can have more time to go over them and because I am extremely busy these days...


	26. More Collision (2K)

**By the way I am glad to see my story is welcomed and interesting. A lot of people seem upset when I was showing possibility of stopping the crossover(which is not happening). Don't worry, I am still uploading. I am just uploading my chapters on Saturdays so I can make sure everything is consistent.**

 **New Readers that Favorited my story after the last update:** **FiendBudda, Icemouse, kilgaxe...Welcome...**

* * *

As Violet was exchanging punches with the common enemy of the Dominion, her emperor was sitting behind a desk in his chamber. Outside the window, two Gorgon battlecruiser lifted into the air and disappeared.

Brian tapped a hologram projector, and the image of a woman in armor appeared. "Amy, how long until are you reach Tatooine?"

"Two hours and thirty minutes." Amy replied. "I thought you knew that before I departed...You appear...worried."

"Yes." Brian said. "Is there any way to speed up?"

"Why?"

"Violet told me she spotted Cassidy on Tatooine...It appeared as if she was trying to murder Anakin's mother. Violet has her pinned down, but they are openly firing. The Hutts are not going to be happy, and they are going to be less happy when one battlecruiser delivers orbital bombardment on the planet."

"Violet is not stupid enough to order the bombardment of a neutral planet."

"She is." Brian tapped his chin. "Violet is as smart as the rest of us, but she is too sentimental. That's why she holds a certain drudge against Cassidy for what she did. This grudge is only going to increase when Cass tries to fight back. The more she fights back, the more man she kills, the angrier Violet becomes, and the more likely she is going to do something stupid. Either Cass will die, or Violet's ship will be fighting the Hutts."

"And you think two more Gorgon battlecruisers can stop Violet or kill Cass?"

"I think two more Gorgon can force the Hutts to turn a blind eye on Violet."

There was a short pause.

"If you, by any chance, capture Cass, let her live." Brian whispered.

Amy almost couldn't believe her ear. "Why? She made it clear she's not one of us."

Brian thought for a while and decided not to tell the truth. The apocalypse is better kept a secret. "I have my reasons."

"You're the emperor. But I'm not sure whether or not Violet will listen, especially after you said Cass tried to kill Anakin's mother. Violet seems to have developed quite some favor for the chosen one."

"You do what you can." Brian said as he closed the comm. He stood up and walked to the window. Below the orbital command he was in, hundreds of unit producing structures were working full time. There, clones were created, bio-chipped, and given the education they need to handle the war machines. Then they would receive their weapon and march to the rally point. Supply depots provided the necessity that the soldiers needed to survive.

Two enormous battlecruisers were parking beside a Starport. Soldiers walked up and down. Then and again a squad of a hundred marines or two tanks would march onto the ship and stay there. Battlecruisers also acted as the living space for battalions of ground units.

In the gaps of the buildings, countless SCVs were bringing minerals and vespine gas back to the commanding center. Most of the resources will immediately be turned into war machines, but a small portion will be stored for future usage.

On the several moons of Korhal, small Terran outposts were getting bigger and bigger. The few vespine geysers were paired with a refinery and were harvested by SCVs. Missile turrets were positioned throughout the planet in case of airborne attacks. A few commanding centers stood near the refineries. Dozens of outposts and auto-turrets protected the commanding center. Nearly a hundred marines manned the bunkers and patrolled the surrounding.

A Hercules transport was flying toward a non-populated planet near Korhal. It carried one hundred twenty marines and ten SCVs, along with enough resource to start a base.

The Terran civilization is thriving...but for how much longer?

* * *

The sound of Gauss rifle piercing wood rang throughout the room. Victor emptied another round before slowly lowering his Gauss rifle. He barely felt the recoil of the weapon, thanks to his armor. Most of the rounds accurately hit the target, but Victor was not satisfied. He's not here for a shooting practice.

He's a soldier, and the biggest problem for a soldier is not having a chance to fight. Deep down, Victor was secretly hoping someone would declare war on the Dominion. That's the only way a soldier like him can find a purpose in life.

* * *

Jess walked into the bar of her constructing battlecruiser. Her ship was not a priority, unlike that of Violet, Amy, and Brian. Still, it was half completed. At least the bar and the living quarter are done.

The bartender passed her a bottle, which she refused. "A bottle of orange juice, please." She said.

Jess had always being a good girl. She was always the best student in the class, always obedient of her teacher. That's why she is seriously confused about what is going on.

Not only were her friends and her somehow transported to a cinematic universe, they were given absolute control of an army! Furthermore, they waged war against another army and actually won. But unlike the other commanders, she was neither blinded by the victory nor have a plan in mind. She was neither a cold blooded killer who does everything she can to strengthen herself nor a leader determined to fight the Apocalypse. She's just a girl who wants to do what's right.

When they were fighting the droids, Jess was fine. The battle droids were mindless killing machines, literally. When Cass was ostracized she was starting to doubt what's really happening. They just attempted to murder another human being, and everyone was cool with it. But it's the start of the Terran Dominion that's really messing her up.

She couldn't believe a group of teenagers just started an empire. What's more shocking is this is actually working. The Dominion is getting stronger and stronger everyday. A month ago they were worrying about an army of droids. Now they are starting to build fleets composed of battle ships. What's next? Conquering the world?

"Ma'am?" The bartender asked.

"Yes?" Jess shook and looked at the bartender. He passed her a bottle of orange juice, and she emptied the bottle and left the bar.

* * *

Cassidy dodged a snipe. She cursed silently. The ghosts were getting more and more annoying. True, she could warp in Tal'darim units, but that would cause a turmoil. A street fight will be upgraded to a full on invasion. The Hutts are not the nicest people in the galaxy. They will hunt everyone down with all their might.

Wait...chaos will result in terrible political influence, but that's worse for the Terran than it is for her. She can't be located, while the Terran have an open identity and can be affected by political methods. If she launch an open conflict, the Hutts will be angry at the only ones they can find...The Terran.

Cassidy waved her hand, and ten zeolets emerged from ten light beams. With a war cry, they charged out of the shop. They didn't have detection, but they were targeting the ghosts. Instead, they charged towards the bystanders.

Tatooine was a place full of chaos, which was not a surprise because it was under the total control of a crime lord. A grand portion on the planet were criminals, including mercenaries, thieves, and crooks. Most of them have seen blood, and the initial fight didn't scare them off. Even those who weren't criminals were not scared of death of the others. Rather, they simply stood by and watched. No one in their right mind would be stupid enough to attack them because that would mean adding more enemies.

That's why they were slaughtered when the ten zeolets charged into them. The crimson bane blades flashed, and the bystanders were sliced apart mercilessly. Some lifted their weapons and fired at the zeolets, but their blasts did little against the plasma shields. Others begged for mercy, but the Tal'darim zeolets were as merciful as a the Swarm. They gladly watched their enemies paralyzed by fear before slaughtering them.

"What are you doing?" Violet whispered.

"Ma'am?" A ghost protecting Violet asked. "Should we doing something?"

"Stop them!" Violet ordered. Whatever Cass was planning, she couldn't just stand by and watch as the zeolets slaughter the innocent.

"But ma'am. You will be unsecured." A ghost hesitated.

"Do it!" Violet ordered as more and more cries came. The two ghosts obeyed as they moved towards the zeolets and aimed their rifle. Unfortunately, a shiver appeared behind Violet, and the ghosts were too far away to notice.

Inside the shop, Shmi screamed as the zeolets slaughtered the bystanders. Right away she knew the girl was not a Jedi. But it was too late. Cassidy stabbed her in the neck with a syringe and knocked her out. Beside her, ten more light beams appeared. However, when the beams disappeared, there were nothing.

"You, assassinate the Terran commander. The rest of you deal with the ghosts. Warp away on my signal. Activate emergency extraction system. You're too valuable to die here." Cassidy said quietly as she carried Shmi on her back and jumped out of the back of the shop.

A blood hunter appeared behind Violet. Her blade raised and was about to slice down when Violet suddenly turned around and tossed something out. The thing exploded and created an EMP pulse that hit the blood hunter. The assassin was uncloaked. Her blade shook violently from the unstable of her Psi energy input.

"Fun fact." Violet smiled as she fired at the blood hunter with her pistol. The assassin took several hits as her shield was disabled. She would try to take down his target or die in the process, but the bullets were accurate and rapid, and prevented her from getting close enough. As more and more bullets hit the blood hunter and penetrated her armor, the warrior begun to be weakened. She tried to shadow walk closer, but Violet sensed her attempt and dodged her just in time. A bullet hit her in the head and knocked her over. Sensing her dire situation, the emergency extraction system automatically warped her back to Slayn. Violet smirked as she tucked the pistol away. "Every Terran commander has a mini detector on her."

One of the two ghosts fired a snipe at one of the zeolets. The round hit the zeolet's shield and caused several damage. The other ghost EMPed a clump of five zeolets and cleared their shields. The bystanders recovered from the massacre and started returning fire at not just the zeolets, but everyone that was involved in the fight, including Violet and the ghosts.

"All ghosts regroup!" Violet ordered. "Does anyone have eye on target?"

"Scans show Cassidy is escaping towards the cargo ship." Captain Edgar said. "But there's a bigger problem. Jabba the Hutt have heard of your action. I don't know what he thought of two unknown forces fighting each other on his territory and slaughtering people under his protection, but he just sent out an impressive amount of mercenaries toward your location. Evacuation is advised."

"Damn it!" Violet shouted. "Ghosts! Keep Cassidy's goon here! We need to prove to the Hutts we are not their enemy."

"No can do ma'am." A ghost replied hesitantly. "They just warped away. It appears like every single one of them has a personal warping device on them to bring them away when they're in life threatening danger."

A few seconds ago, when Cassidy realized she was basically safe, she ordered the zeolets and the blood hunters to warp away. They are too precious for her to needlessly waste. She got what she came for, and evacuation is so close.

Violet took a deep breathe. "Cass can warp away, but Shmi can't. Whatever reason Cass wants her, she's not going to abandon her target. Captain Edgar, lock down the planet. I don't want a single ship leaving Tatooine!"

"Ma'am, I don't think that's the best way to do this..."

"That's an order! Cass must not leave Tatooine with Shmi Skywalker!" Violet couldn't imagine what would happen if a woman like Cass gets her hand on Anakin's mother. She will turn the Chosen One into something even worse than what he would one day become. She has to stop that with all cost.

"Yes ma'am." Edgar signed. "Deploy all fighters and force all the ships leaving the planet back. Where's commander Amy? We need reinforcements." He stood at the bridge and looked at the planet of Tatooine. "And, charge up all batteries and ready the Yamato, I have a feeling we are going to be assaulted.


	27. Soon to be a Space Battle (2K)

**Second chapter of the week.**

* * *

"Who are you?" Shmi Skywalker asked. The two were in a small city of Tatooine on the other side of the planet. By now any logic person would've figured out Cass was no Jedi. The woman was tied up on a bed, but she was not damaged. Cass doesn't want to future Darth Vadar to kill her for hurting her mother. The original owner of the house was not so lucky.

Cassidy ignored the woman for now. She was too busy communicating with her underlings.

"Observers have spotted a Terran battlecruiser in the space above Tatooine. Newest Intel says that it is blockading the planet and stopping any traffic from entering or leaving Tatooine." A zeolet in red armor reported. He knelt down obediently to show respect. In the Tal'darim society, improper addressing of the superior can be severely punished.

"How are the Hutts reacting?" Cassidy asked as she fixed her nail plating. Sharp metal claws that extended from her fingers could leave a deep wound in human flesh without encountering any resistance. Every part of a Tal'darim is a weapon.

"The Hutts are deploying their ground forces. A group of mercenary elites have been sent to Mos Espa, but it appeared like the Terran strike force have escaped. What is your will, High Lord?" The zeolet replied humbly.

Cassidy ignored him. "Any logic human being in Violet's place would've evacuated. She probably returned to her ship. But she made a mistake in thinking the Hutts can be frightened by a single ship. As the ruler of the Outer Rim, the Hutts are too powerful to be intimidated by a single battlecruiser. Their fleet is about to be deployed very soon. Violet is under much more pressure than I am. All I have to do now is wait and see what she does."

She was right.

On the bridge of the Gorgon battlecruiser, Violet was faced with a severe dilemma. Cassidy is on the planet of Tatooine in hiding, but Violet couldn't get her because Tatooine is under the control of the Hutts. By blockading the planet, she made sure Cass couldn't escape, but in doing so made the Hutts her enemy. It doesn't matter if she keep on the blockade or abandon it. She'll always lose.

The hologram projector on the ship flashed. Violet didn't answer it, but the override authority of the other end opened the communication anyways.

"Listen to me carefully, commander." Brian said with a serious tone. "You need to pull back now. On the military side, your ship is too weak to go against the Hutts. According to reliable information, they are at least dozens of ships and tens of hundreds of fighters on Tatooine under the Hutts. They are piloted by elite mercenaries who are experienced and brave. On the political side Senator Mason had been struggling to calm the senate down. The republicans were not glad of our assault on one of the most important planets in the Outer Rim. You need to leave the planet." He was referring to Violet by her position rather than her first name. He's serious.

"I am this close to Cass." Violet turned around hastily. "If Cass gain a path to young Skywalker she will turn him into a monster. If I can get Shmi, then I can prevent Darth Vadar from existing. I need to get Cass."

"You're wasting too many time and energy on protecting Skywalker." Brian signed. "One Vadar can't change the course of war if the Terran Dominion rises. Even the greatest Sith Lord can't beat fleets of battlecruisers without support of his own ships, and we will make sure he doesn't get the chance to lead a fleet of the empire. But if we risk the entire Dominion to prevent Skywalker...we'll be risking more for less." He stated. "Warp back to Korhal. That's an order."

"You are far away from the field and you know nothing about the situation." Violet said loudly. A look of defiance in her eyes. She's not someone that plays by the rules. "I'll do what is right." She pressed the off button on the hologram, but the device wouldn't turn off. Brian signed and realized he couldn't change her mind. Of course, the chip in the brains of the Terran soldiers allowed him to order Violet to be arrested, but he's not willing to reveal that yet. He had bigger fish to fry with those chips.

"It's your choice." Brian turned off the hologram. "Amy, are you hearing this?" He asked to another hologram, Amy's, which observed the entire exchange.

"What do you want me to do?" Amy frowned.

"Board Violet's ship and arrest her. She is out of control now." Brian said quietly. "Of course, I will not do anything to her. She's just too rash and emotional to be the head of a fleet. I'll give her some time before giving her her fleet back." He added. The later sentences were necessary. He doesn't want to give the others an impression that he is eliminating the commanders who refused to completely obey him. If he does, his rule will be threatened. A civil war is the last thing he needs.

Meanwhile, Violet was determined. This determination didn't change when she heard of an incoming attack.

"Commander." Captain Edgar walked up in his general uniform. "A fleet of ten ships are leaving the planet of Tatooine and approaching us. ETA five minutes."

"Call back the Vikings." Violet ordered. "Captain, take it from here." She knows her own ability in commanding space battles. Her captain was a clone built and trained to command ships. It's always better to let the experts to their jobs, especially when their loyalty is assured.

Captain Edgar nodded. "All hands on deck. Enter combat mode. Ready missile pods. Ready all anti-air laser batteries. Ready defensive matrix. Charge up Yamato cannon. Prepare for warping to assigned location on my signal. All Vikings move to position Charles and wait for further instructions." The crew members on the ship nodded and went to their positions. The light of the ship turned red to remind the people aboard about the upcoming danger.

* * *

Klunjuuh Varg never thought anyone would be stupid enough to challenge the Hutts, but he was wrong.

As a trusted lieutenant of Jabba, Varg clearly understood the power of the Hutts. Even though their race of people seemed fat and weak, their power were numerous. Not their physical power, of course, but the power within the empire the Hutts created.

To maintain their power in the Outer Rim, the Hutts have an army of mercenaries at their disposal. Some of these mercenaries were recruited from the best bounty hunters. Others were trained from recruits. In either cases, the wealthy Hutts give them a large sum of money in exchange for their loyalty. They were not the most obedient soldiers, but their quality was impressive. The experienced, loyal, and well equipped soldiers made up the ground forces of the Hutts.

In the space, the Hutts didn't have a single, famous fleet that won any important battles. However, with the wealth and technology of the Hutt empire, the ships and crew members aboard were extremely well equipped and relatively large in number, for now. Even though they lacked in experience, they made it up with their numbers and their technology. Anyone who dared challenge the Hutts would face merciless termination.

This is why he was shocked to hear about a group of soldiers slaughtering civilians in a village on Tatooine.

Even though the Hutts were criminals, they understood violence was bad for business. If violence was everywhere on Tatooine, then no one would go there to trade and the economy would suffer. Plus, it would be disgrace for the Hutts if their own capital was full of chaos. Quiet, discreet fighting would've been fine, but opening fire on the streets was just a slap in the face. Jabba sent a squad of mercenaries to execute the transgressors.

But those foolish enough to commit the transgression turned out to be smart enough to escape. Jabba was about to post a bounty on their heads when he heard his capital...was blockaded...by a single ship.

Varg have never seen Jabba so angry before. The Hutt lord cursed and swore. The other Hutts were frightened, but Varg was clever enough to see a chance. If he can destroy those that angered the mighty Jabba, then he, Varg, would please Jabba as much as the intruders angered him. He could make a fortune off this.

Varg asked to take down the ship. Jabba agreed and gave him ten ships and two hundred fighters. He understood that would be an overkill, but that's exactly what he wanted. He wanted to show everyone his power by bringing down fiery and unstoppable retribution on those who opposed him.

And that's why Varg is at the bridge of a ship, watching nine other ships, slowly but steadily, flew toward the lonely cruiser a distance away.

"Where are their fighters?" The captain of the ship stood beside Varg. He wore a straight uniform and had a solid looking face. He silently moved a step to the side, away from the Hutt. A look of disgust was on his face. "Reports say their fighters have been stopping transportation from leaving the planet. They have left a few minutes ago and should be here already."

"*&)&*&" Varg said loudly. The captain frowned as a translator droid translated the message.

"The great Varg asks why does the fighters matter. Why don't we overwhelm the one ship?"

"Someone that's willing to use a single ship to go against a planet is either stupid or prepared. It's not likely for the crew member of the entire ship to be fools, which means there might be a trap. If the fighters come in at our ships when we are fighting their cruiser, then we might sustain heavy and unnecessary damage..." He was cut off by an insulted Hutt.

"&&))&)&(^$%^#"Varg said angrily. He doesn't care whether the ships get hurt and people die. He just cares about how swiftly he can win the fight and how glad his master is going to be when he returns victoriously and how much his master is going to reward him.

"The great Varg is insulted by your cowardice. Those that brought shame upon the great Hutt family must die. In the name of the mighty Jabba, captain Gossel, you are ordered to move the ships in."

Gossel signed. He doesn't like to be commanded by someone who was higher ranked but inexperienced. However, he had no choice. The Hutts could replace him with a single order. "Attack formation, full speed forward. Launch all fighters." He ordered loudly before walking to a lieutenant of his and started whispering into his ear. "Send out patrols on our rear end. I have a bad feeling about this.

The lieutenant nodded and left. Captain Gossel did his best to show confidence. The crew members can't see their captain hesitating as the fear would pass down to every member. The captain must be confident, even though he wasn't. He doesn't feel good about this.

Gossel used to be the captain of a mercenary ship. He commanded hundreds of crew members and made a name for himself after several close battles. The Hutts noticed his success, and Jabba made him a part of the Hutt fleet. He got to keep his ship and a group of men loyal to him, but he also had to obey his supervisors. While enjoying a high salary and a relatively safe situation, Gossel despised the lost of freedom. It is his cautious and planning that helped him survive all those battles, and he felt bad when there's something that he didn't plan for.

In the infinite darkness of space, the two fleets went closer and closer...

* * *

 **Cliffhanger...Be patient. I'll upload more next Saturday.**


	28. Terran Dominion vs Hutt Fleet (2K)

**First chapter of the week.**

* * *

A distance away, ten ships charged at the lonely battlecruiser. The size and the number of the two sides were vastly different. Most of those that saw the encounter would expect the single ship to be taken down by the first volley of fire.

But that is quite different from the opinion the commander of the one ship expected.

"In order to intimidate the Hutts, we must wipe the incoming fleet out completely and decisively. A crushing victory is necessary to prevent the Hutts from gathering everything they have and throw them at us." Captain Edgar explained to Violet.

"Sir, the Vikings report a patrolling squad at the back of the Hutt fleet. They can't surprise the ships." A communicator reported.

"It's fine. Their task was not attacking with the element of surprise." Edgar waved his hand. "Let's see what our enemies are planning."

On the other end of the fleet, captain Gossel was trying his best, despite a superior that knew nothing about the art of war.

"Fire all weapons. Launch all fighters and cut off their retreat. All power to forward engine." The captain ordered. The ten ships moved forward with full speed while raining down showers of red light beam on top of the battlecruiser. None of the captains wanted to communicate with each other first. Both of them wanted to terminate each other and make an example for future enemies.

It's quite amusing, if you are not at the other end of the rain.

"Activate Defensive Matrix!" Edgar said loudly as the laser web grew closer and closer. Almost instantly, a green hexagon appeared around the ship and blocked all incoming laser beams. The red gun shells disappeared as soon as they made contact with the matrix. The defensive matrix could only exist for a short period of time before requiring a rather long cool down, but with the price came the near invulnerable protection it provided the ship for a short while. A short while is all that Edgar needs.

"Yamato cannon, fire at the labeled ship!" The main cannon of the Gorgon battlecruiser charged up for a few seconds. An immense wave of energy gathered at the middle of the ship before it was pushed out to the enemy of the Terran Dominion. The red plasma bolt flew across space and went directly for the largest ship in the Hutt fleet. It left a trail of red in the dark deep space.

"Evasive action!" Gossel cursed. How did the enemy knew which ship was the flag ship. Further more, how did the enemy even survive the wave of laser fire?

He would never find out.

The flag ship tried to dodge, but its size limited its speed. Plus, Yamato cannons were supplemented with a highly advanced computer, which adjusted the direction of the cannon so that its chance of missing is minimized. Usually simply dodging doesn't work. Only warping away quickly or cloaking and moving away can evade the hit.

The Yamato cannon hit the front of the flag ship. The heat of the plasma ball itself and the explosion that followed tore the heavy armored ship apart. In an attempt to chase down the Sting, all power were directed to the engine rather than the forward shield. The mere physical armor melted and crumbled under the enormous kinetic energy. The great Varg and the experienced commander, along with hundreds of elite crew members, perished under one hit. Not even their bodies survived.

On board Spine, Edgar grinned. He knew scanning the opposing fleet can be a good idea. He knew about the enemy ships before they knew about his. One of the ships was heavily armed and armored, and he knew which ship he should target.

The nine ships that survived were unable to comprehend what just happened. The captains were experienced. They fought against great odds for many times, and survived all of them. They have endured defeat and escaped with their ship. But never before have they been in a battle where their weapons couldn't harm their foe, and their foe can one shot their ships.

This is not a fair fight.

Of course, the remaining of the Hutt fleet didn't know the Yamato cannon went into a ten minutes long cool down after initially firing.

"What should we do?" The lucky captains went together. Unfortunately, the mercenaries were not professional soldiers. They obeyed one single commander, Gossel, due to the order of their Hutt employer, but none of them really trust each other. They didn't have a back up system in case the command have been wiped out. Thus a debate happened.

The remaining captains formed two groups. One suggested attacking the Gorgon battlecruiser. If the cruiser could unlimited fire those plasma bolts then it would've done that by now. If they can use this lack of firepower and use their advantage in number to overwhelm the ship, then the Hutts will be especially happy. They will be even more generous if they can retrieve the plasma cannon and hand it to the Hutts. They can make an unbelievable profit.

Mercenaries are always willing to ignore the danger and keep their eyes on the prize.

This group included six ships.

Another group suggested backing off. This group only had three ships. The three captains refused to take the risk. They would rather play it safe and return to Tatooine. They might lose a reward and get despised by the Hutts, but at least they will live on.

In the end, after four minutes of heated discussion, threatening, and shooting at Hologram projectors, the two groups separated. Six ships marched at the Gorgon while three returned to Tatooine.

"Sir, they are splitting up." A crew member reported.

"It's fine. Everything's under control." Edgar replied calmly. "Order the Vikings to hunt down the smaller fraction. They must not be allowed to return to Tatooine. We need to keep our strength a mystery to intimate the Hutts or else they will realize we are weaker than we appear. We will be overran." He turned to Violet. "With all due respect ma'am, and I am speaking as a tactician, this is a bad idea."

Violet didn't say anything.

"Launch all fighters." A captain shouted. "Tell the boys those bastard's weapons can't fire again. They are weak. Break them, and we can get enough credits to drink for days!"

The fighters charged toward the Spine head on. Their size was insignificant compared to the Gorgon, but their ships were specially modified to increase speed and firepower. Plus, hundreds of fighters, with the help of six ships, can rip the battlecruiser apart...if the cruiser doesn't fight back.

As the fighters approached, the anti air guns on the Gorgon battlecruiser started blasting. Most of the firing missed, but sometimes a fighter would burst into flames. Once hit, the laser battery could demolish the unarmored and not shielded fighter. The fighters fought back with their lasers, but the result was limited.

One of the fighters bravely flew before the bridge of the battlecruiser. A fire ignited in the pilot's eyes. If he can destroy the bridge and wipe out the commanding class, he would gain a huge reward. Unfortunately, he was thinking too much. The first half dozen blasts were blocked by the cruiser's seemingly weak glass. But the battlecruiser wouldn't have became the most powerful Terran space aircraft if a fighter piloted be a brave pilot could maim it. The glass was designed to withstand multiple shots of zerg bio-weapon and protoss particle disrupting beams.

The pilot's expression changed to horror as a round from an air to air battery turned his ship into a ball of flame.

Meanwhile, on the other side, three mercenary battleships were met with two squadrons of Vikings. Eight Vikings for every ship might not seem unfair, but Vikings were armed with torpedoes designed to take down large ships...

The six vessels charged up and started unleashing their guns of the Spine. Edgar's body shock, along with everyone else on the ship.

"We're taking fire! Estimated armor breach in five minutes!"

"Prepare warp drive!" Edgar ordered. "Commander, I need you to hold on. This is going to be a tough journey." Violet nodded and grabbed to the side. She had a faint idea about what was about to happen.

"Tactical jump to assigned location on my mark. Ready..." He marked a position on the star map. "Now!"

Immediately, the entire ship was covered with green particles. Its tip disappeared first, and the second half soon followed. The entire ship vanished.

"What the?" A captain protested. "Where did it go?"

The comm channel was suddenly filled with complaints and protests. The mercenary fleet just suffered heavy losses AND lost their prize. The Hutts are not going to pay them for their losses, and they will be poor and battered.

"Come back you cowards!" A merc screamed loudly. For once, this is not useless. His mouth hanged open as a huge metal beast appeared behind the six ships.

"Turn the ship around!" A captain screamed. In order to provide maximum safety and firepower, all the power were directed to the forward shield and guns. The back was completely vulnerable. After all, who would think a captain would be crazy enough to do a short distance hyper jump? Travelling in light speed means it is almost impossible to time everything perfectly. The punishment for failure was death.

The six ships struggled to move their heavy body. They looked like turtles trying to adjust itself. They were too slow.

"Fire all weapon!" Edgar shouted. A wave of fire was rained down upon the remaining of the Hutt fleet.

Violet watched as the six ships were torn apart by the more than intense laser fire. The few guns were taken down. Spare metal parts started to fall off the ships. From these openings, contents of the ships were sucked into the vacuum of space. Human bodies. Metal pieces. Weapons.

Dozens of escape pods were launched. More would've made it out if the ships didn't start to explode. In most cases, the firing was enough to ignite the fuel tanks or other flammable departments.

"Commander, the Vikings have terminated the three ships before they could return to Tatooine. Our losses were minimal. We have won this battle." Captain Edgar walked up to Violet.

Violet just stared into the wreckage. The body of a mercenary flew by the window. He had no internal wound. The lack of oxygen killed him. His face was purple. He died in pain.

"How many men were on those ships?" She asked quietly.

"Every ship carried around four hundred men, including crew members, soldiers, and commanding officers." Edgar replied. Terran soldiers weren't trained to feel sympathy.

"All of them are dead?"

"There are a few drop pods. Shall we terminate them?"

"No." Violet replied. "Let them go. We have won."

Edgar nodded and backed off.

In one of the drop pods, a twenty year old man was watching the Sting with ultimate hatred. "Goodbye father." He mummered. "I will avenge you."

"Now what? Captain Gossel is dead so you are in charge." Someone asked. "Do we return to the Hutts?"

"No." The man said quietly. "I will find out who this ship belongs to, and then I will kill him and everyone he cares about. He made a mistake in letting me go."

Violet didn't know her sudden mercy created a monster that would haunt her forever. She is now occupied in an internal Terran affair.

"Commander, you have been relieved of duty. I am taking control of your fleet for now. It is the order of the emperor." Amy said via hologram.

Violet nodded. "Fine, but promise me one thing. Don't let Cass escape."

Amy turned away. "I can't promise that, but I can promise you I will not touch your fleet."

Violet signed and nodded. "Thanks."

"I'm sending a transport to pick you up. You will be brought back to Korhal."

Violet sat on the captain seat. She watched as a special ops dropship landed in the hanger of the Spine. Minutes later, five fully armed elite marine walked in. Violet stood up and followed them away.

"Get a comm up to the Hutts. We need to discuss a treaty." Amy finally said.


	29. Let Loose (2K)

**Sorry of the late update. I was very busy recently but I'll see what I can do.**

* * *

On the planet of Slayn.

High templer Konyth walked along the rough ground of the fiery planet. The planet was made up of fire and sand, and the Tal'darim structures were not helping with making the environment a better place.

 _This is not how things are supposed to be..._

At the period of destruction, the chosen one was supposed to bring the Protoss race to a new height. The oracles had witnessed it. But instead, the one chosen to extend the first born had turned to the dark ways.

Instead of building up the Golden Armada and reconstructing the Aiur fraction in this new world, the abomination turned to the Tal'darim fraction that was stored in the database merely because there strength in combat might be useful in the new world. But now, the Tal'darim was prospering under the chosen one, and the rebirth of Aiur was nowhere to be seen.

Due to her doubt in the absolute loyalty of the fractions beside from the Tal'darim, Cassidy limited the amount of resource given to these fractions. Instead, she spent most of her resources on improving the Tal'darim race.

That was why the Tal'darim was including hundreds of zeolets and slayers, along with dozens of vanguards and three destroyers, but the Aiur fraction was limited to a dozen zeolets and a single high templer. The Tal'darim had level one upgrade in shield and weapon, while the Aiur fraction had no such luck.

Cassidy warped the Aiur buildings and units onto Slayn from her pocket dimension and replaced them with a Tal'darim Nexus and Tal'darim units.

Konyth knew he had to do something. If he stood by and watched, then Aiur would be lost for ever, along with every single trace of the Daleem Protoss.

He knew he had to leave Slayn and rebuild Aiur somewhere else. If Cass wouldn't do it, then he would.

But the Tal'darim High Lord wouldn't be happy about him escaping from her control. It was one thing to not use someone, it was another to allow that someone to abandon.

The Tal'darim would stop at nothing to stop him. But he had faith. The Khala would guide his blade through the utter darkness.

Still, he had to act before the Tal'darim realized something's off. First, he needed to steal a ship.

Konyth walked toward the hanger, which held two Tal'darim destroyers. They were the only way, besides warping, to escape from Slayn. Twelve zeolets followed him.

Four zeolets and an ascendant were standing guard at the gate of the hanger. Two photon cannon added extra protection.

"What do you want, the firstborn?" The fourth ascendant smirked. He didn't realize what the high templer was attempting. It was stupid to betray the Tal'darim, which was way stronger. He paid a price for his arrogance.

"For Aiur!" Konyth wasted no time. He roared and tossed a feedback on the ascendant. A red flame appeared from inside, and the ascendant fell on the ground, screaming in pain. His powerful Psi energy was used against himself. He survived, barely.

The four Tal'darim zeolets reacted quickly. All of them were heavily upgraded and well trained, but the Aiur zeolets weren't weak either. The zeolets were quickly overwhelmed by the twelve charging Aiur zeolets. Two of the photon cannons fired at the zeolets, but the ammo merely caused some ripple on the zeolets' shields before being dismantled. Four red lights signified the end of the Tal'darim zeolets. The fourth ascendant activated emergency warping system and escaped a second before Konyth's Psi blade landed in what would be his head.

Slightly disappointed in failing to kill his foe, Konyth wasted no time as he entered a destroyer and warped the other zeolets into the ship. He quickly redirected the warp drive of the ship to prevent being warped back by force. Quickly, the ship lifted into the air and jumped away...

First Ascendant Arialla was sitting in her chamber, the second well decorated building on the planet, when a supplicant entered. 'First Ascendant." He kept his head low. "The hanger was attacked. Protoss loyal to the Aiur fraction abducted a destroyer and jumped away."

"They are fools to betray the High Lord." Arialla said. The air around her shook from her anger. "Recall the destroyer. Gather the warriors. I will deal with those traitors." Arialla stood up. Psi lightening flashed between her fingers.

"Second Ascendant Dheren tried that. It appeared like the traitors did something to the warp drive. They were prepared."

"They were planning for this betrayal for a while." Arialla sat back down. "What are our losses?"

"Four zeolets and two cannons were destroyed. The Fourth Ascendant cowardly escaped after being defeated."

"The dead were weaklings. As for the Fourth Ascendant, he is too weak to serve the High Lord. Give him the strength..." Arialla said coldly. The supplicant shuddered and felt bad for the fourth ascendant.

"Shall we pursuit?"The warrior asked after a few seconds as Arialla closed her eyes and did no further action. But what about the Aiur units? Arialla glanced at him, and the supplicant knew he went over a line. He bowed and left the room in a rush. Arialla waited until he left before opening a comm to her leader.

On Tatooine, Cassidy watched as the Hutt fleet stopped mobilizing and the Terran fleet leaving. It appeared like the two came to an agreement. Didn't matter. She got what she came for. That was when she noticed a request for communication from the First Ascendant.

"Arialla?"

"High Lord."

"You better have something important to say, FIRST ASCENDANT." Cassidy said impatiently. She didn't want to spend precious time on talking with an underling when she should be escaping with her objective.

"High Lord. The Aiur fraction escaped Slayn via a stolen destroyer."

"What the..." Cassidy frowned. "Send units to the Aiur Nexus and kill every single Aiur Protoss. I will be back soon."

"As you wish, High Lord." Arialla replied. She closed the comm and walked out of her chamber.

A few minutes later, half the Tal'darim army marched to the Aiur Nexus, only to find it abandoned...

* * *

Cassidy closed her comm and turned back to the owner of a shipyard on Tatooine. She suddenly realized something: She needed a transport to bring Shmi, who is human, to Slayn. That was why she and Shmi went to a ship yard to purchase a vessel. The Tal'darim soldiers warped away.

"This ship costs 2500 credits, but it's worth the price." The owner advertised his product as much as he could. "This baby has its own hyperdrive. I would've sold it at a much higher price if I wasn't in such a hurry." He said as if he made a terrible deal in selling the ship. It was a method to convince the customers to accept the price.

But Cassidy wasn't just a regular customer.

"I'll take it. How long before I can have the ship?" Cassidy didn't bring any credit with her, but that was not a problem.

"Just a second." The owner smiled warmly and walked to another room to grab some pages. But as soon as he entered the back of the room, he took out an inter phone and called a certain number.

"This is Tatooine Security Division. State your request." A voice came from the comm. The speaker was proud, and he had the reason to be. The job as a member of the government under the Hutts was enough to make him feel better than the civilians.

"I have spotted someone on a bounty." The merchant said quietly, frequently looking over his back. "She looked exactly like the one wanted on a bounty put up today. She was wanted, dead or alive, by Jabba."

For a few seconds the other end of the phone was quiet. But then another voice spoke. "This is commanding officer of the TSD. Give us your location and keep the target there for ten minutes."

"How about the bounty?" The merchant asked greedily.

"You'll get them. All 10000 credits." The captain replied, and the merchant, satisfied, sent him his location. But inside the captain smirked. Jabba offered a bounty of 10000 credits on this girl after having a conversation with someone on the fleet that blockaded Tatooine and destroyed ten Hutt ships. Whoever she was, she must have angered the great Jabba. He had no sympathy for the girl. In fact, if he could be the one to bring the girl in, then he would likely be praised by the ruler of the outer rim. He would be promoted, at least. After all, he had been on this job for way too long. It was time to move up a few steps. 10000 credits also wouldn't hurt.

"Gather all combatant and bring all weaponry. Move to this coordinate." He said as he grabbed on to a blaster. It would be the best if he could be there to capture the wanted.

As for the merchant...he would give his life in an attempt to stop the target. His death would be sad, but there would be no point for a dead man to get the credits, right?

The shipyard owner had no idea he was sold out by an official. He was still trying to stabilize the girl that was unlucky enough to stumble into her shop.

But as he was walking back to his customer he suddenly realized a thing. It would be dangerous for him if the security forces came and he was beside their target. It might be better to leave for now and then return to reclaim the price.

"I might need a piece of material to complete the transaction." He said, smiling and pretending to be normal. "I'll be right back."

Cassidy nodded, not suspecting. After all, she could sense the man was just another normal civilian. What could he do to threaten her.

Again, her arrogance hurt her.

* * *

Cassidy frowned as the merchant hadn't return after twenty minutes. He should be back. What sort of transaction would need this amount of time. Plus, she had an odd feeling, as if she was in a life threatening condition.

Outside the shipyard, dozens of people, human and alien, surrounded the building. All of them were armed with blasters, and some carried much stronger weapon, such as sniper and machine gun. The members of the security force wore white helmets and black body armor. Captain Minch was in command. He had a blaster strapped on his belt and wore a white helmet, as if that would save him from a blast.

"She's in the building. Here." The merchant gave Minch a pad containing the live footage of the security camera in the building. Cassidy was sitting on a chair with her eyes closed while Shmi was walking around aimlessly.

"Move!" Minch ordered, and all the soldiers moved to enter the building from all five entrances. Three snipers were on a tree, in another, higher house, and behind the cover of a security vehicle. Five speedsters prepared to hunt down Cass if she tried toe escape.

Inside the shipyard, Cassidy finally had enough. She stood up and walked toward Shmi. "We need to get out of here...something's..." She didn't complete her sentence as three sounds of blasters penetrated the air. Two green blasts flew toward her.

Cassidy's expression changed drastically. She didn't wear her armor and didn't have a plasma shield. An alien armor wouldn't have been the most covert. This made it much harder to defend herself.

Still, she was in time to create a Psi shield around herself, which absorbed the two blasts. But the sound of a body hitting the floor made her curse. She turned around and found Shmi on the ground, a hole on her forehead.

Damn it...

But Cassidy didn't have time to curse fate as the sound of footsteps approached.

"Target intact. Capture her." Minch ordered as the soldiers formed a circle around Cassidy.

"Hands on your head or we will open fire!" One of them roared. They ignored the dead woman by their feet. She was with their target, which gave more than enough incentive for her death.

They had no idea what mistake they made.

Cassidy suddenly grinned. On the entire trip here she had been suppressing her urge to cause chaos and death. Why? She needed to bring Shmi back alive, for the future's sake. She had to flee from the Terran hit squad. She had to watch the Terran fight the Hutts. Now she had to suffer defeat from a group of weaklings...

Luckily, now that Shmi was dead and her plan to control Darth Vadar was already gone, why not have some fun?

Cassidy smiled wickedly. A series of beams of light shined upon her and the soldiers looked away. A few seconds the lights disappeared, and they found two dozens two meter tall aliens before them. Most of them wore armor and had two red light staffs on their arms. Two of them floated in the air. The girl that they surrounded now wore a red armor with blades pointing out of every corner. Her long braid was covered by red plating. She had two red staffs on her arms.

She grinned...and all hell went loose.


	30. Retreat (2K)

Captain Minch's expression changed from a look of confidence to a combination of fear and anger. He had live feed on the field condition via the headset of one of the security soldiers. He knew he screwed something up as soon as he saw the blood thirst in the eye of the hunted.

He suddenly realized something. Jabba wouldn't have given a bounty on someone insignificant. The danger of going after the target was usually matched with the amount of reward a bounty provided. Jabba paid 10000 credits for her...

And now the hunted became the hunter.

"Kill them all!" Minch ordered. The soldiers fired red blasts as they pulled the triggers with all their force. To their desperation, the red blasts that could melt a hole in human body disappeared before actually hitting the aliens. It was as if they were blocked by something.

"Let the feasting began." Cassidy smirked. The zeolets made a battle cry and charged toward the soldiers.

Minch's fear was immediately turned to anger as Cass referred to the battle as a feast. Sure, the entrance of the alien soldiers was impressive, and the aliens looked powerful. But his soldiers weren't slacks either. In fact, most of them used to be mercenaries and bounty hunters.

He found out why it was a feast really soon.

A zeolet charged into a soldier. His Psi blades, in a swift slash, severed the soldier in two. The soldier's upper body fell on the ground and screamed. The zeolet smirked and ignored him instead of putting his out of his misery. He walked, slowly, toward another soldier. The soldier backed off as he fired, but the blasts from the handgun didn't have enough to take down a zeolet's plasma shield with a few shots, especially after the shield was upgraded twice. The zeolet walked up as the soldier found himself backed to a wall. The zeolet, tired of the prey, cut his head off.

A soldier noticed how two of the alien soldiers weren't fighting. Instead, they just floated in the air and observed the battlefield. He assumed they were commanding officers. After all, commanders usually stay behind and were usually relatively fragile. So he charged toward the Ascendant...And he screwed up as his body exploded...literally.

The 5th Ascendant smirked at the soldier blown up by a mind blast. He didn't want to fight the soldiers because he didn't want to waste time fighting weaklings. But no that one of the weaklings was stupid enough to challenge him...well, that was fun.

Cassidy walked by the dead soldiers. Most of them died by Psi blades, which made the scene messy. Red blood covered the floor, but Cass didn't care as she stepped over them. It wasn't like a Tal'darim High Lord would be afraid of blood. She stopped beside one of the dead soldiers. The armored girl knelt down and straightened a camera and smiled.

"Just a second." She licked her lips. "I feel it's better if we talk in person, don't you think?" She waited for a second. The only sound was the cries from dying soldiers. All the zeolets have defeated their foe and were now standing in attention. "I'll take that as a yes." She dropped the camera and walked out of the building. Her army followed her.

"What the hell?" Outside, Minch was swearing. How should he reply? It was a camera, not a communication device! But he didn't have much time to complain. He turned to the driver. "Get us out of here!" The driver of the speedster obeyed and powered up the vehicle, but Cass was already onto him as she stepped out of the building.

The three snipers did their best. They took Cassidy's head into the cross and was about to pull the trigger when something penetrated their heart. They looked down and found that their body was stabbed by something invisible. The sniper blaster fell on the ground, along with its former owner. Three blood hunters grinned and disappeared into a puff of smoke.

Cassidy paid no attention to the sharpshooters. They couldn't really threaten her. Instead, her eyes were trained on the speedster that turned around and ran. She sensed someone on the vehicle had the answer to who ordered the attack.

When she learned the name, she would make him, whoever he was, pay for his action.

Minch let out a small smile as the speedster went further and further away from those alien soldiers. He was safe now. Within a few hours she could return with the majority of the Hutt forces. Thousands of mercenaries and dozens of ships would bring an end to the bitch and her army...After all, this was Tatooine, the base of the Hutts.

Suddenly he saw a red lightening approaching via a mirror on the side of the speedster. The driver saw that as well. He did his best to dodge the blast, but the psi powered attack was much quicker than a machine. The lightening hit the vehicle and knocked it over.

Minch groaned as his body flipped along with his speedster. He tried to move his body, but realized he couldn't.

He saw something moving before him. The driver stood up. His face covered with blood. "Help me!" Minch hissed. The driver knelt down and reached for his hand. However, before Minch could grab his hand, a red blade penetrated the driver's chest. A look of pain appeared on the driver. The man fell dead. A figure took the place of the dead man.

"You..." Minch trembled. His head was bleeding from the crash. "Your head is demanded by the mighty Jabba himself. Do you think you have won? You are on Tatooine! The entire planet is blockaded and not a single ship can leave! Your doom is near!"

"So Jabba sent you. At least I don't need to interrogate you for the one behind this attack." Cassidy stated and squashed the captain before he could say something else. "As for Jabba, he'll meet a similar fate very soon...Ascendant, prepare the warriors for a full on assault!" Her eyes were purple, the color of Terrazine.

The 5th Ascendant walked up. He didn't obey the order. "High Lord. Observers spotted large number of enemy units on the planet. They are well trained and well equipped. The sky is controlled by dozens of enemy ships. We are outnumbered."

Cassidy frowned. She glanced at the ascendant with a forceful look. The ascendant felt the air around him tensing up. In order to prevent a pointless death, he spoke quickly. "The duty of the High Lord is to make sure the Tal'darim survives. Among our society, the High Lord accepts the privileges but also has to fulfill the duty. Assaulting the humans is going to damage our race. We need to pull back."

Cassidy groaned, and a powerful Psi energy wave erupted. The 5th Ascendant assumed he would be killed for disobeying the High Lord, but then realized he was still alive. A speedster behind him erupted into flames.

Cassidy, who calmed down after the eruption, took a deep breath. For a moment her mind was covered with the lust for battle. She wanted to ignore all the planning and kill everyone who challenged her, starting with the 5th Ascendant. But then she regained control. The ascendant was right, and she knew it. Her mission failed. She needed to find other ways to gain more power.

"Lets go." Cassidy said. The 5th Ascendant obeyed swiftly as dozens of light beams engulfed the Tal'darim. When an army of mercenary arrived ten minutes later, all they saw was dozens of severed bodies. Their target was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

As Cassidy felt her body phasing, her mind was turning fast. She was starting to realize her mistake. She could've, should've realized something was wrong when the shop owner left and never came back. She should've kept some scouts outside. She could've done so many things to prevent the mission from going abroad, but she didn't. Why? She never imagined those puny mercenaries could truly hurt her.

There was a time period when Cassidy continuously inhaled Terrazine to enhance her strength. She became much more powerful than before, but as a consequence the Terrazine was starting to make her mind dull. Her thoughts were not as clear as before. She perfected doing things before thinking.

And it had cost her dearly.

Now that Shmi Skywalker was dead, Anakin Skywalker would come at her with all his might just like the way he went for the Tusken Raiders in the original timeline. Never mind an alliance. He would kill her the second he saw her. The Terran would undoubtedly tell Skywalker that she killed his mother. After all, they were enemies.

The empire would be her enemy. But even before that, the republic and the Jedi Order will not welcome someone that killed innocent to their side. Her plan to make an alliance against Anubis would backfire.

Well, if outside force couldn't be gained, then she might as well harness the force within.

Cassidy searched for the information on the Tal'darim forces. The Tal'darim had outposts on dozens of planets around Slayn. Hundreds of probes and dozens of zeolets and slayers, as well as one ascendant, were posted there. These outposts functioned as both a source for minerals and vespine gas and the first line of defense against potential enemies.

On the planet of Slayn, there were 7 destroyers and around 1000 ground units, including zeolet, havoc, slayer, ascendant, and 15 immortals. 500 probes moved around the planet to gather resources.

In fact, the Tal'darim forces could've been way stronger. The mineral income per planetary rotation could produce one destroyer. Unfortunately, destroyers had to be piloted by ascendants. The Tal'darim Nexus could produced Tal'darim warriors with one warrior per rotation per Nexus. The problem of efficiency was solved by producing more Nexus, but the newly produced individuals were weak. They had to remain the position of zeolets for a period of time before getting strong enough by Terrazine and meditation to become an ascendant. Currently, Cassidy was in an awkward position with more ships than pilots.

Then his thought turned to the other fractions. Even though the Aiur fraction fled, the other two Protoss fractions, Nerazim and Purifier, still remained. The Nerazim were not the best counterpart of the Tal'darim, but the strength of the Purifier could not be underestimated.

The Purifier program was created by the Aiur Protoss, who faced a similar problem as Cassidy as their number couldn't afford large amount of losses. Even though the Aiur units were durable, and most of the warriors could warp away before being hit critically, the rate of natural growth couldn't match the number of decrease in population due to war. Thus, the Purifier were created.

Purifier were essentially robots. In some cases, the conscious of dead Protoss would be copied and transferred into Purifier bodies. These robots would have all the experience and memory of the warriors they were replicated from. In fact, some of the warriors became more powerful after the copying because of their mechanical bodies.

Purifier were killing machines, and they were the exact thing Cassidy needed.

 _War is coming..._

Cassidy opened her eyes on Slayn.


	31. Purifier (2K)

**These chapters might be boring for some people, but I need to set up everything needed before the attack of the clones and the clone wars. Be patient. When the clone war starts, everything will be much better.**

* * *

"Are you sure this is the wisest action, High Lord?" Arialla asked. "The Purifiers are untrustworthy. They are too proud to yield to us. After all, they are replicates of Aiur Protoss."

Cassidy and Arialla were standing in the newly warped Purifier Nexus. Before her, a Purifier legionnaire was assembled.

The legionnaire was the purifier version of a zeolet. They were mechanical and stronger than normal zeolets. Legionnaires had two blades on each arm. Their bodies was covered with yellow plating, which just like red for Tal'darim and blue for Daleem, stood for the Purifier fraction.

Cassidy didn't reply. She already knew the units she created weren't necessarily loyal to her. She didn't know about the Terran, but her experience with the units wasn't ideal. The Aiur fraction abandoned her because she wasn't trusting them. She managed to control the Tal'darim via the chain of ascension, but still she was almost overthrown by her underling. Who knows what would happen to the Purifier?

The legionnaire opened his eyes. As soon as he saw Cassidy, his blades extended. Arialla blocked Cassidy with her blades extended, protecting her, but Cassidy pushed her aside.

"You Tal'darim abomination!" A halo formed around his back. Cassidy frowned. Some Purifiers were replicates of famous warriors while others were merely programmed to serve. The halo represented the first possibility. The legionnaire looked around, alert.

"I am the High Lord of the Tal'darim. I activated you. To an extent, I gave you your life." Cassidy smiled, ignoring the hostile action the legionnaire had against her. "And I ask you and your brothers to serve me in return."

The legionnaire smirked. "I fight for Daleem, not for a...human protoss hybrid." He had a tone of disgust.

Cassidy frowned. "Too bad...But then again...I don't need you." She charged forward. The legionnaire lifted his blade to deflect, but he wasn't strong enough. The Purifier fell after three rounds.

"The Purifier are not cooperating." Arialla stated the obvious. She wasn't trying to make Cassidy embarrassed at her failure. She was just stating the obvious. Tal'darim were not good at the art of words.

"The replicates of the Daleem warriors are not cooperating. It's not surprising." Cassidy showed no sign of unhappy. She walked to the control panel and pressed something before ordering a zeolet to enter.

As the zeolet entered, a light beam shined on him. It disappeared after a few minutes, and Cassidy waved for the zeolet to leave. A few seconds later, another legionnaire was produced. Its eyes shined yellow. But this time it knew down before Cassidy in obedience.

"You replicated the conscious of one our warriors into a Purifier shells?" Arialla concluded as she examined the legionnaire. "That's brilliant. The new warriors would be loyal to the chain of ascension, and their strength would be improved by the mechanical shell. Most importantly, we can build an army without worrying about not having enough warriors. We can build as many units as our resource allow. Your wisdom is limitless."

"I am not wise. If I were, the Aiur fraction wouldn't have left." I would have killed them all before they had the chance to flee. Cassidy said as she turned around and left the Nexus. "And get every ascendant on the chain in comm. I have something to say."

* * *

Cassidy stood in a chair in a Tal'darim Nexus. Dozens of ascendants, whether via hologram or by themselves, were before her. Some of them were ascendants, others were destroyer pilots. First Ascendant Arialla was just next to Cassidy.

"I know some of you are plotting to rise in the chain of ascension." Cassidy stated openly. "In fact, all of you are planning to rise." She glanced at Arialla, the first ascendant, who avoided her look. The only way the First Ascendant could rise was by defeating the High Lord.

"I don't blame you. After all, in our world, the strongest rules. If one day I becomes weak, then the first ascendant will take my place. Such is the way of the Tal'darim. Such is the way of the chain of ascension." She continued as she flickered her fingers. She enjoyed how the ascendants were frightened. It made her feel a sense of control. "I have reasons to believe an enemy is lurking in the dark. This enemy has the ability to destroy everything we value."

"So I am issuing an order. You can challenge each other in the chain of ascension all you want, but if a challenger defeated the challenged, then those loyal to the challenged are not to be harmed. In return, the army of the defeated will turn their loyalty to the victor. This is to prevent unnecessary weakening of our race. We are in the crossroad of fate, and I don't want to end up on the wrong side of history."

Cassidy scanned every ascendant. All of them kept their heads low in obedience. "From now on, I give you the right to build your own forces and fleet. Each and every one of you can conquer planets and build fleets as much as you want. In fact, I will provide you the technology to turn the resources into loyal units. But, remember, you can fight all you want, but unless you think you can defeat me, then you will obey my order as top priority. Am I clear?"

"As you wish, High Lord." All of the ascendants obeyed. Cassidy waved her hand, all the ascendants left the room. Cassidy closed her eyes.

In the Tal'darim society, every ascendant had his or her own followers. These followers usually included ascendants, zeolets, slayers, and immortals. In some cases, powerful ascendants would have Wrathwalkers and all kinds of ships all their disposal. With their army, the ascendants would control a few planets and attack certain targets that would benefit the ascendant. Under normal circumstances, the ascendants would do their best to build their army in hope that they would help them ascend.

When the entire Tal'darim society had a target in sight, then the High Lord would call for the Death Fleet to assembled. In that case, all the ascendants would contribute their army and merge them into a powerful fleet under the command of the High Lord. No matter the conflict before, the ascendants would work together to win the fight. No one would use the chance to sabotage the other ascendants...at least not frequently or openly.

By allowing the ascendants to expand as much as they could, Cassidy was playing a dangerous game. If she could control the ascendants, then she would have a powerful fleet when she needed one. But if someone was powerful enough to overthrow her, then all would be over.

Cassidy opened her eyes and walked out of the Nexus. Outside, all of the ascendants were on route to a new planet. They brought their followers, and the flock shrunk a bit. Still, the amount of warriors left was impressive. Around 800 ground units, including all the Immortals, were left. Three dozen blood hunters lurked in the shadows.

Cassidy walked directly to the Purifier Nexus and started to glance through the available units.

The Purifier army was built with the intention to build an army that consists of all kinds of supplementing units. In this extend, Purifier was stronger than the Tal'darim. The Tal'darim units were mainly made to fit the chain of ascension, and there was no such thing as engineers or tacticians in the society. The armory was limited to the raw psi strength and skills of the warriors and whatever weapon and design the fleet was able to steal from the other Protoss fractions. Even when Cassidy started to produce ships and weapons, the arsenal was still short.

The Purifier, on the other hand, consisted all the units needed for a battlefield. They provided all the tools a commander need to win a war.

Sentinals and Legionnaires replaced the role of zeolets. Such units were much more cost effective than zeolets simply because of their ability to be created with impressive efficiency. A mechanical unit could be assembled, given an AI personality, and deployed into battle in hours given the required resources, whereas a normal zeolet needed time to train. On the battlefield, the sentinels, that could reconstruct, were more durable than ordinary zeolets. Legionnaires were armed with heavier shield and armor to protect their shells. Such protection couldn't be available to normal zeolets as they would affect their speed. Sentinals cost 1500 minerals and legionnaires cost 2000.

Adepts and Instigators acted as the ranged units of the Purifier army. Adepts were armed with glaive cannons that could target both ground and air enemies. They could also create a shade of themselves and teleport to the location of the shade if they choose to do so. Instigators were modified stalkers that could blink multiple times, allowing them extra mobility in combat. They had particle disruptors. Adepts were built to target light units while instigators were built to target armored foes. Adepts cost 1000 minerals and 250 vespine gas. Instigators cost 1500 minerals and 500 vespine gas."

In order to fulfill roles such as enhancing the skills of the warriors in combat and providing them with adequate support to maximize their damage to the enemies, energizers and conservators were constructed. Energizers could create a power field and allow other units to warp in. They could also use their chrono beam on allied units, granting them faster movement and attack speed. Conservators were able to create a protective field to deflect enemy attacks. They could also recharge the shield of friendly units, keeping them alive longer and increasing their damage output. Both units could greatly improve the strength of the Purifier units, making them even harder for the enemies to deal with. Both units cost 500 minerals and 1500 gas.

Cassidy nodded. Without supporting units, a Tal'darim army had a fifty percent chance of defeating a Purifier army of equal size and technology. However, it would be an impossible task if every attack the Tal'darim warrior made was reduced before landing on the enemy, and the shield the enemy lost was immediately regenerated. The Purifier warriors would attack and move much quicker, making it difficult for the Tal'darim to respond. Even if the Tal'darim had a breakthrough, they would be pushed back by the reinforcements. Even her would struggle against such an enemy. She might kill a few enemy units with her abilities, but the rest would be able to overwhelm her before she could recover her energy.

Like she thought. Purifier, to an extent, was even stronger than the Tal'darim. However, they had one weakness. There were no Psi unit in the army. There were no templer that could rival the ascendants and deal mass damage in a short amount of time. If the ascendants, assisted by large amounts of supplicants, could break through the line with sudden bursts of damage, then the Tal'darim might win. Still, this weakness was covered by the mechanical beasts and the mass fleet the Purifier utilized.

Immortals were assault walkers similar to vanguards. However, the Tal'darim ignored the lives of the pilots and armed the vanguards with as many weapons as possible to make sure they do the most damage to the enemies possible before dying. The Purifiers, on the other hand, gave Immortals not only phase disruptors that could deal a massive amount of damage but also with a barrier that could absorb a ton of enemy fire. Immortals cost just like vanguards at the price of 2500 minerals and 1000 gas.

Colossus was the Purifier version of Wrathwalker. However, colossus used thermal lances that could burn any enemy to ashes. They had tall legs that was enough to ignore most terrain that would usually stop ground units. They were usually positioned behind the front line and unleashed terror onto the center mass of the enemy horde. A few swipes, and most of the enemies would be gone. Colossus cost 20000 minerals and 15000 gas.

The colossus was built to destroy large amount of small enemies while immortals could take down armored targets that withstood the thermal lances. The two supplement on the battlefield.

The Purifier fleet was much more tactical than the simple combination of destroyers and motherships of the Tal'darim. The Purifier fleet consisted of a variety of ships, going from small, fast fighters like scouts and mirages to support units like warp prisms and observers to capital ships such as tempests and carriers. These ships form a fleet that could carry out missions of all sorts.

Both mirages and scouts were high speed starfighters. Scouts used photon blasts and anti matter missiles. They could function as both fighters and bombers. Mirages were fighters using ion cannons that were great at taking down light enemies but could only shrug against capital ships. Mirages had phase armor that allowed them to dodge certain attacks. Both units cost 4000 minerals and 1500 gas. Mirages were excellent and dealing with fighters as they were agile and quick, while scouts could destroy capital ships with their anti matter missiles. In a space battle, mirages would escort the scouts to the enemy capital ships and deal with enemy fighters on the way. Once the enemy capital ship was in range, the scouts would destroy them.

Observers and warp prisms couldn't attack, but they were meant to assist the rest of the fleet. Observers had their own built in cloaking field that allowed them to spy on the enemies closely without being attacked. They had complex arrays of self focusing lenses that allowed them to provide the most accurate information to the commander. Warp prisms could create a power field similar to that of a pylon and of a energizer. However, its power field would be larger and stronger. Units like carriers that couldn't be warped into the power field of an energizer could be warped in by a warp prism. The presence of warp prism allowed both the ability to reinforce the fleet and a way to escape from a critical situation.

Finally, the Purifier had capital ships that dominated the battlefield. Tempests were artillery vessels that could deal incredible amount of damage to a large target, such as enemy capital ships. Their kinetic matrix was less effective against smaller fighters, but in most cases the tempests would be protected by scouts and mirages, along with interceptors from carriers. Tempests cost 30000 minerals and 20000 gas to construct. A volley from a dozen tempests could tear most enemy capital ships into pieces.

Carriers were the last piece in the Purifier arsenal. Carriers had a durable plasma shield that could withstand most punishment with little consequence. They had repair drones that could repair mechanical units, which included the entire Purifier army. Carriers launched smaller strike crafts called interceptors that would fire at the enemies. A single carrier could unleash a swarm of hundreds of interceptors. Carriers also had a purification beam mounted in front. Carriers carried large amounts of ground units, and could warp them into combat whenever they were needed. Carriers cost 100000 minerals and 50000 gas.

Cassidy opened her eyes as she absorbed the information on the Purifier army. The Purifier fraction was undoubtedly more powerful than the Tal'darim, but she was concerned. If the Purifiers decide to betray her, or if they were compromised, then she would be defenseless.

Currently she used the AI personality of Tal'darim warriors, but they might betray her.

Cassidy thought about it for a while. She needed to have a backup plan. A plan to execute if the world turned against her. She needed to find someone she could absolutely trust.

Then she realized. Who else was more trustworthy to her than herself?

* * *

In the Purifier Nexus, Cassidy's eyes snapped open. Before her, a specially modified Purifier shell was assembled. The machine had a halo on the back. It had two yellow blades on the two mechanical arms. A plasma shield generator was at the front of its chest. Its eyes shined yellow light.

It was a Purifier...with Cassidy's own AI personality.

She duplicated herself.

"Are you connected to the data web?" Cassidy asked her clone.

"Yes. I can override and control all the Purifier shells if I want." Clone replied. It...she...spoke with an inserted sound producing device. After being cloned, the Clone lost all of Cassidy's psi abilities but regained a number of new abilities that she could produce with her new body. "This...body feels strange."

"It's powerful." Cassidy replied. "With your presence, I can develop the Purifier fraction without worrying about a betrayal. You have connected to the Purifier data base, which means you know more about these units than I do. Do you have any suggestions?"

The Clone's eyes blinked as her brain worked. "The current income of the planets you have direct control of is 40291 minerals and 20193 gas per 24 hours. However, this amount of income will grow drastically as we expand to the planets around Slayn. I suggest we focus on producing mirages and warp prisms. We can send out small parties of units, including a warp prism carrying a few probes and one or two mirages as escort, out. Whenever the party spot a planet, a probe will be dropped down to the surface. The probe can warp in a Nexus and a few pylons, and we will be able to warp in units and more probes to the planet. We can mine from those planets."

"Is it weird that we had the exact same idea?" Cassidy smiled as she started to produce the warp prisms and mirages. "The answer is no. After all, you are my clone."

"Technically, we are different." The Purifier Cassidy replied. "I have your memories, but our personality is only 99 percent similar." Cassidy shrugged.

"Another thing, we should send units to planets near the hyper lane." Purifier Cassidy added. "If we don't, then the enemy might be at our gate without us knowing it."

"Send in parties to..." Cassidy checked the star map. "Nickt Ka, Corbos, Bosthirda, and Rhieg. Warp in observers."

Purifier Cassidy gave an order through the Purifier data web. "Anything else?" She asked.

"No." Cassidy said before leaving the Nexus. Purifier Cass closed her eyes and shut down.

* * *

On a random planet near Slayn, three ships suddenly exited warp space. One of them was crystal and slower while the two others were quick and swift. The three ships approached the planet and went through the atmosphere. The two mirages patrolled in the air while the warp prism opened into phasing mode. A probe exited. It went to an open field and warped in five buildings, including a Nexus and four pylons. As soon as the pylon was done, four photon cannons were warped in. Inside the power field, figures started to materialize. The probe returned to the warp prism. The three ships, completing another small objective, lifted into the sky and flew into the dark space.

Two minutes later, twenty probes and five legionnaires were on the planet. Ten minutes later, eighty probes were happily mining off the five vespine geysers on the planet and off the minerals in the ground. An hour later, twelve more geysers were discovered. The unit count went up to eighty probes and twenty sentinels and five legionnaires.

The planet alone contributed another 4500 minerals and 2000 gas to the daily income of Cassidy's army. These resources were immediately transported back to Slayn, where they were turned to three adepts and one instigator.

With the help of the Purifier, the forces of Cassidy grew every single day. But would that be enough to deal with what was about to happen?


End file.
